Paul McCartney — 1979 When I was 16 I got my first part-time job. I started working at a music store in the fall of 2008 and by the time I began to find my bearings we were all tossed into the icy clutches of the holiday season. …

Arthur Warrell (sort of) — 1939 Part of what makes the Christmas season so special and distinct is its incredibly rich iconography: Christmas trees, holly, and wreathes all come to mind at the mention of the holiday. But what else do these things all have in common? They all…

John & Yoko / Plastic Ono Band — 1971 Pop stars and Christmas songs are like peanut butter and chocolate: they were always meant to be together, and eventually someone realized there was money to be made. When you have pop artists like Michael Buble, Carrie Underwood, or Mariah…

Ernst Anschütz — 1824 Part of what makes Christmas music so interesting is its lack of any unified style. The only real rule for writing an enduring Christmas carol is it has to be memorable, but somewhere along the line a few hundred years ago composers started noticing they…

Hugh Martin & Ralph Blane — 1944 One of the most famous and melancholy Christmas classics, “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” has been performed and recorded year after year after year after year since its creation in 1944, and why not? It’s not just super cozy; it’s also…

Frank Loesser — 1944 I think we all knew this one was coming. I’ve been dreading writing about this song. First off, this is not at all a new observation, considering every year inevitably dozens of people write articles about how…

Traditional — 1833 (kinda) In the realm of old school English folk tunes, “I Saw Three Ships” is a textbook case. Quick stanzas, simple chord progression, and lyrics so repetitive you’ll be begging to walk the plank or die in a scurvy-charged mutiny. The thing is this one starts…

William Chatterton Dix (kinda) — 1865 Part of the reason people both love and hate Christmas music is because of how ridiculously catchy it can be. From classics like “Jingle Bells” and “Silent Night” to newer tunes like “Last Christmas,” a their survival depends on them staying in your…