Brenda Lee’s holiday hit “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” still lives on, and it’s more popular than ever 65 years after its release. This festive Christmas anthem finally reached the summit on the Billboard Hot 100, transforming Lee into the oldest artist to top the chart along the way.
After taking the back seat to Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” for four years in a row, “Christmas Tree” finally climbed to the No. 1 spot. This is quite an achievement, considering this song came out all the way back in 1958 and Lee was only 13 when she recorded it.
Lee became the oldest artist to top the Billboard Hot 100 at 78 and set several more records along the way. This song also had the longest run to No. 1 (65 years), while Lee herself set a record for the longest span and the longest break between No. 1 singles (63 years).
Lee stayed as humbled as ever after achieving this monumental success and credited her team and her fans for making it happen.
“It’s a conglomerate of a lot of people that made the song what it is… I’m happy for everybody here that’s worked so hard to make this happen because in today’s world, everything moves so fast and furious. But I’m telling you this: My label has come to bat,” she told Billboard.
