Rockin’ around the Christmas tree at the Christmas party hop. Mistletoe hung where you can see, every couple tries to stop. Rockin’ around the Christmas tree, let the Christmas spirit ring. Later we’ll have some pumpkin pie and we’ll do some caroling. You will get a sentimental feeling when you hear voices singing, let’s be jolly. Deck the halls with boughs of holly. Rockin’ around the Christmas tree, have a happy holiday. Everyone dancin’ merrily in the new old-fashioned way.

First recorded by Brenda Lee in 1958 when she was just thirteen years old, this song has become one of everyone’s favorite holiday standards.

Like so many of the other songs, it recalls all the major trimmings of the season, with a special emphasis on caroling. Like several others, it is most definitely a dancing tune. And, like a great number of the songs we have seen these recent weeks, it shares the puckish enthusiasm for love and mistletoe.

But the line that makes this one of my favorite Christmas songs is the very last. Yes, it is important that we feel sentimental about the holidays. However, the key emphasis in this song is everyone joining in the party.

Especially by dancing – the way our parents and grandparents learned in the mid-twentieth-century. (Frankly, in my opinion, it is the best way of dancing. Particularly swing and shag.)

So on this Friday night before Christmas, I hope that you are feeling festive and enjoying some cheer with friends and loved ones. And if not, I hope this song will lift your spirits enough to dance around your room, wherever you may be. Because Christmas is nearly here and everyone’s invited to the party. Cheers!

Traditional Hymns & Carols – Coventry Carol & Angels We Have Heard On High

Lessons & Carols – Infant Holy, Infant Lowly