It might be surprising for readers to learn that the most popular Christmas songs, at least as judged by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers have little to do with the religious origins of Christmas. Few could be classed as the traditional Christmas Carols with which those who celebrate Christmas are most familiar. Instead, in their list of the most frequently recorded songs in the 21st century, the oldest song on the list dates back to 1934, and the newest is Paul McCartney’s 1979 recording Wonderful Christmastime.

If you’re a lover of songs like Angels, We Have Heard on High or God Rest Ye, Merry Gentleman you may feel distinctly Scroogish when you see the actual list. Of course, this list only takes into account those songs that are most recorded, not the list of those songs that resound from churches, or from traditional carolers during the Christmas season.

The top ten most popular Christmas songs as judged by recording frequency are:

The Christmas Song (often called "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire")
• Santa Claus is Coming to Town
• Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
• Winter Wonderland
• White Christmas
• Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!
• Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
• Jingle Bell Rock
• I’ll Be Home for Christmas
• Little Drummer Boy

The only instrumental song among the most popular Christmas songs is in eleventh place, Sleigh Ride first recorded by the Boston Pops. Of the top 25 most popular Christmas Songs, Johnny Marks stands out as the clear favorite among composers. He wrote Rudolph and two others in the top 20 most popular Christmas songs, Holly Jolly Christmas, and Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree.

Some popular Christmas songs aren’t rerecorded. For instance, the wonderful, and extremely popular instrumental songs for A Charlie Brown Christmas featuring the considerably talented Vince Guaraldi Trio haven’t been rerecorded often, though the original disc was digitally remastered and sold at Starbucks® stores in 2006. Some things are just done so well, they don’t need to be repeated.

If you’re looking for Christmas songs that don’t quite enjoy this popularity or are more specifically religious in tone, there are certainly many sites where you can find them. Most helpful are sites that offer you both music and lyrics, for all of us who can make it through the first song stanza and forget the rest of the lines. There are also numerous downloads available at stores like iTunes® or on sites like Amazon.com. However, since some of older classics are now in the public domain, your favorite Christmas songs may be downloadable for free or for significantly reduced prices. Further, you’ll be able to find the sheet music for virtually every song that is presently in the public domain, if you’d like to perform these classics for yourself!