Last time it was a hymn. Today, it’s a holiday standard. Johnny Marks was a prolific writer of Christmas songs. Entries that have become staples in popular music: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, A Holly Jolly Christmas, Run Rudolph Run, and my entry today, Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree.

Brenda Lee was 13 when she recorded the song in 1958 that we hear every holiday season. You read that right, 13. Talk about mature-sounding voices! Rockin’  is one of the best-selling holiday digital downloads in history, and it charts every Christmas on the Billboard  Hot 100.

I started working on this last December but ran out of time before I could perform it. I played through the song once a week or so this year and then ramped up the practice and added a few elements starting in November. It was suggested I use a full strum through the verses of the song, something I hadn’t done before when playing chord melody. There is a challenge to this, as the booming low G string can drown out the other notes, but the change up is fun:

In the next installment, Aria and I pair up for a song that she chose from the 1950s. Perry Como was the first to record it, but the Carpenters’ version is the best known.