Billboard Christmas Holiday charts

Billboard magazine only charted Christmas singles and albums along with the other popular non-holiday records until the 1958 holiday season when they published their first section that surveys only Christmas music.

An increase of Christmas records began charting Billboard in 1957. The popular music surveys charted 9 Christmas singles, including the debut of the Bobby Helms' standard "Jingle Bell Rock" (Top 100 Sides #6). Gene Autry's newly recorded version of his 1949 original "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" made the Top 100 Sides at No. 70. The Best Selling Pop LP's had 11 seasonal albums chart including the debut of Elvis' Christmas Album that topped the survey for 3 weeks.

Bing Crosby's all-time best-selling single "White Christmas" returned to the Top 40 again in 1957 at No. 34. It has charted Billboard's surveys almost annually since it first spent 11 consecutive weeks at No. 1 on their Best Selling Retail Records chart beginning Oct. 31, 1942 It reached the top spot again in 1945 for two more weeks and made its 14th #1 week on December 28, 1946. Crosby's "Silent Night" (Top 100 Sides #54) and "Silver Bells" (Top 100 Sides #78) also made the Top 100 Sides in 1957. All 3 of these titles are included on his Merry Christmas which returned to No. 1 in January 1958 after charting Billboard's album surveys since its debut in 1945.

The "Billboard Music Popularity Chart" began weekly publication in their July 27, 1940 issue, with lists covering jukebox play, radio play, record sales and sheet music sales. The following are the most popular Christmas holiday singles that charted prior to 1958 according to those surveys.

On November 24, 1958, the magazine published Deejay's Favorite Christmas Disks. Described as the records played most frequently by disk jockeys each Christmas season, according to a survey made by The Billboard, the section consisted of 3 top 10 lists charting the top Holiday Singles, LP Albums and for the only time on Billboard's Christmas/Holiday surveys, EP Albums. Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" was the No. 1 single, Percy Faith's 1954 Music of Christmas was the No. 1 LP and Pat Boone's 1957 Merry Christmas was the No. 1 EP. A Holiday survey would not be published again until the annual Christmas Records section is launched in 1963.

Seven holiday singles charted the first year of Billboard's Hot 100 in 1958 including the debut of "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)" (Hot 100 #1 for 4 weeks) and Harry Simeone's "Little Drummer Boy" (Hot 100 #13). Bobby Helms' "Jingle Bell Rock" returned to the charts at No. 35. Eight holiday albums charted on Billboard's Best-Selling LP's survey in 1958 including the debut of Johnny Mathis' Merry Christmas that peaked at No. 3 on December 27. Mitch Miller & The Gang's first holiday album Christmas Sing Along with Mitch peaked at No. 1 on January 8, 1959. Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" made its first Hot 100 appearance in 1959 at No. 59. Perry Como debuted his second Christmas album Season's Greetings from Perry Como on The Billboard's TOP LP'S on January 8, 1960, peaking at No. 22.

The 1960 Hot 100 had 10 holiday singles including the debut of an annual charting of Brenda Lee's standard "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" (Hot 100 #14) and the return of Nat King Cole's "The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You)" (Deejay's Favorite Christmas Disks #2, Hot 100 #80). Bing Crosby's "Silent Night" (Deejay's Favorite Christmas Disks #8, Hot 100 #54) also returned in 1960 and the flip side "Adeste Fidelis" (Hot 100 #45) also from his 1945 Merry Christmas album made its first charting.

Bobby Helms returned to the Hot 100 at No. 36 in 1960 with the start of an annual charting of "Jingle Bell Rock". Harry Simeone's "Little Drummer Boy" and "The Chipmunk Song" re-charted the Hot 100 every year after their initial release just as Christmas Sing Along with Mitch and Johnny Mathis' Merry Christmas album had on Billboard's Best-Selling LPs chart. The Chipmunks with David Seville followed up in 1960 with a cover of "Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer" that peaked at No. 21 on the Hot 100. Bobby Rydell & Chubby Checker's cover of "Jingle Bell Rock" peaked at No. 21 and "Baby's First Christmas" by Connie Francis peaked at No. 26 in 1961, both re-charting the following year. Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" returned to the Hot 100 in 1961 at No. 12 and in 1962 at No. 38.