"White Christmas"1942 78 single release of "White Christmas" by Bing Crosby on Decca Records, 18429 A, with Ken Darby Singers and John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra, Matrix # DLA 3009Single by Bing Crosby with Ken Darby Singers and John Scott Trotter and His Orchestrafrom the album Song Hits from Holiday Inn B-side "Let's Start the New Year Right" "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" "Jingle Bells" ReleasedJuly 30, 1942 (original)[1]RecordedMay 29, 1942March 19, 1947StudioRadio Recorders (Los Angeles) (1942 recording)[2]GenreTraditional popLength 3:02 (1942 recording) 3:04 (1947 recording) Label Decca (1942–1973 issues) MCA (1983–1985 issues) SongwriterIrving BerlinBing Crosby singles chronology "Be Careful, It's My Heart" (1942) "White Christmas" (1942) "Moonlight Becomes You" (1942)
"White Christmas" is a song reminiscing about an old-fashioned Christmas setting. Written by Irving Berlin for the 1942 musical film Holiday Inn, the song won the Academy Award for Best Original Song at the 15th Academy Awards.
Introduced by Bing Crosby, it topped the Billboard chart for 11 weeks and returned to the number one position again in December 1943 and 1944. His version would return to the top 40 a dozen times in subsequent years, the most recent being 2025. Crosby's version is the world's best-selling single (in terms of sales of physical media), with estimated sales in excess of 50 million physical copies worldwide.[3] When the figures for other versions of the song are added to Crosby's, sales of the song exceed 100 million.[4][5][6] It also remains one of the best-selling singles in the United States with estimated physical copies sold between 10 and 12 million as of 1963.[7]
Since its release, "White Christmas" has been covered by many artists.
History[edit] Origin[edit]Accounts vary as to when and where Berlin wrote the song.[8] One story is that he wrote it in 1940, in warm La Quinta, California, while staying at the La Quinta Hotel, a frequent Hollywood retreat also fored by writer-director-producer Frank Capra, although the Arizona Biltmore also claims the song was written there.[9] He often stayed up all night writing. One day he told his secretary, "I want you to take down a song I wrote over the weekend. Not only is it the best song I ever wrote, it's the best song anybody ever wrote."[10]
Bing Crosby versions[edit] Bing Crosby (1943)The first public performance of the song was by Bing Crosby, on his NBC radio show The Kraft Music Hall on Christmas Day, 1941, a few weeks after the attack on Pearl Harbor.[11] Crosby subsequently recorded the song with the John Scott Trotter Orchestra and the Ken Darby Singers at Radio Recorders for Decca Records in 18 minutes on May 29, 1942,[2] and it was released on July 30 as part of an album of six 78-rpm discs from the musical film Holiday Inn.[8][12] At first, Crosby did not see anything special about the song. He just said "I don't think we he any problems with that one, Irving."[13]
The song established that there could be commercially successful secular Christmas songs[14]—in this case, written by a Jewish immigrant to the United States.[15] Ronald D. Lankford Jr., wrote, "During the 1940s, 'White Christmas' would set the stage for a number of classic American holiday songs steeped in a misty longing for yesteryear." Before 1942, Christmas songs and films had come out sporadically, and many were popular. However, "the popular culture industry had not viewed the themes of home and hearth, centered on the Christmas holiday, as a unique market" until after the success of "White Christmas" and the film where it appeared, Holiday Inn.[16] De Marsh and Steve Propes wrote, "'White Christmas' changed Christmas music forever, both by revealing the huge potential market for Christmas songs and by establishing the themes of home and nostalgia that would run through Christmas music evermore."[17]
The song initially performed poorly and was overshadowed by Holiday Inn's first hit song: "Be Careful, It's My Heart".[12] By the end of October 1942, "White Christmas" topped the Your Hit Parade chart. It remained in that position until well into the new year.[12] It has often been noted that the mix of melancholy—"just like the ones I used to know"—with comforting images of home—"where the treetops glisten"—resonated especially strongly with listeners during World War II. The Armed Forces Network was flooded with requests for the song. The recording is noted for Crosby's whistling during the second chorus.[12]
In 1942 alone, Crosby's recording spent eleven weeks on top of the Billboard charts. The original version also hit number one on the Harlem Hit Parade for three weeks, Crosby's first-ever appearance on the black-oriented chart.[18] The song also topped the following weekly charts in the same year: Songs with Most Radio Plugs, National record sales, and National sheet music sales.[19] Re-released by Decca, the single returned to the No. 1 spot during the holiday seasons of 1945 and 1946 (on the chart dated January 4, 1947). The recording became a chart perennial, reappearing annually on the pop chart twenty times before Billboard magazine created a distinct Christmas chart for seasonal releases.
In Holiday Inn, the composition won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1942.[20] In the film, Crosby sings "White Christmas" as a duet with actress Marjorie Reynolds, though her voice was dubbed by Martha Mears. This now-familiar scene was not the moviemakers' initial plan. In the script as originally conceived, Reynolds, not Crosby, would sing the song.[12] The song would feature in another Crosby film, the 1954 musical White Christmas, which became the highest-grossing film of 1954. (Crosby made yet another studio recording of the song, accompanied by Joseph J. Lilley's orchestra and chorus, for the film's soundtrack album.)
According to Crosby's nephew, Howard Crosby, "I once asked Uncle Bing about the most difficult thing he ever had to do during his entertainment career… He said in December, 1944, he was in a USO show with Bob Hope and the Andrews Sisters. They did an outdoor show in northern France… he had to stand there and sing 'White Christmas' with 100,000 G.I.s in tears without breaking down himself. Of course, a lot of those boys were killed in the Battle of the Bulge a few days later."[21]
The version most often heard today on the radio during the Christmas season is the 1947 re-recording. The 1942 master was damaged due to frequent use. Crosby re-recorded the track on March 19, 1947, accompanied again by the Trotter Orchestra and the Darby Singers, with every effort made to reproduce the original recording session.[10] The re-recording is recognizable by the addition of flutes and celesta in the beginning.
Although Crosby dismissed his role in the song's success, saying later that "a jackdaw with a cleft palate could he sung it successfully",[22] he was associated with it for the rest of his career.
Sales figures[edit]Crosby's "White Christmas" single has been credited with selling 50 million copies, the most by any release and therefore it is the biggest-selling single worldwide of all time. By 1968, it had already sold thirty million.[23] The Guinness Book of World Records 2009 Edition lists the song as a 100-million seller, encompassing all versions of the song, including albums.[6][8] According to analysis of PRS for Music figures, it was estimated that the song generates £328,000 of royalties per year.[24]
Crosby's holiday collection Merry Christmas was first released as an LP in 1949, and has never been out of print since.
There has been confusion and debate on whether Crosby's record is the best-selling single, due to a lack of information on sales of "White Christmas", because Crosby's recording was released before the advent of the modern-day US and UK singles charts.[25] However, after careful research, Guinness World Records in 2007 concluded that, worldwide, Crosby's recording of "White Christmas" has sold at least 50 million copies, and that Elton John's recording of "Candle in the Wind 1997" has sold 33 million.[4] However, an update in the 2009 edition of the book decided to further help settle the controversy amicably by naming both John's and Crosby's songs to be "winners" by stating that John's recording is the "best-selling single since UK and US singles charts began in the 1950s", while maintaining that "the best-selling single of all time was released before the first pop charts", and that this distinction belongs to "White Christmas", which it says "was listed as the world's best-selling single in the first-ever Guinness Book of Records (published in 1955) and—remarkably—still retains the title more than 50 years later."[26][6]
Legacy[edit]In 1974, the 1942 recording of the song by Bing Crosby and The Ken Darby Singers on Decca Records was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.[27]
During the Vietnam War, a recording was broadcast on Armed Forces Radio on April 30, 1975, as a secret, pre-arranged signal precipitating the U.S. evacuation from Saigon.[28][29][30]
In 1999, National Public Radio included it in the "NPR 100", which sought to compile the one hundred most important American musical works of the 20th century. Crosby's version of the song also holds the distinction of being ranked No. 2 on the "Songs of the Century" list, behind only Judy Garland's "Over the Rainbow", as voted by members of the RIAA.[31] In 2002, the original 1942 version was one of 50 historically significant recordings chosen that year by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry. In 2004, it ranked No. 5 on AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs survey of top tunes in American cinema.
In a UK poll in December 2012, "White Christmas" was voted fourth (behind "Fairytale of New York", "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" and "Merry Xmas Everybody") on the ITV television special The Nation's Fourite Christmas Song.[32]
Formats and track listing[edit]These are the formats and track listings of single releases of "White Christmas".
10-inch shellac single – U.S. (Decca – 18429) 1942[33][34]No.TitleWriter(s)Length1."White Christmas"Irving Berlin3:022."Let's Start The New Year Right"Irving Berlin 10-inch shellac single – U.S. (Decca – 23778) 1947No.TitleWriter(s)Length1."White Christmas"Irving Berlin3:042."God Bless Ye Merry Gentlemen"traditional 7-inch vinyl single – U.S. (Decca – 23778) 1950[35]No.TitleWriter(s)Length1."White Christmas"Irving Berlin3:042."God Bless Ye Merry Gentlemen"traditional 7-inch vinyl single – U.S. (MCA – 65022)[36]No.TitleWriter(s)Length1."White Christmas"Irving Berlin3:042."God Bless Ye Merry Gentlemen"traditional CD single – UK (MCA Records – MCSTD48105)[37]No.TitleWriter(s)Length1."White Christmas"Irving Berlin3:062."Auld Lang Syne"Robert Burns (lyrics), Scots folk melody1:383."Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy"Larry Grossman, Ian Fraser, Buz Kohan / Katherine K. Dis, Henry Onorati, Harry Simeone2:37 Original verse[edit]Irving Berlin's opening verse, contrasting the sunshine and warmth of Christmas in California with the narrator's desire for a traditional holiday setting of winter snow, is often dropped in recordings. It is included on A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector, sung by Darlene Love; on Barbra Streisand's A Christmas Album; on the Carpenters' Christmas Portrait, sung by Karen Carpenter; on Neil Diamond's The Christmas Album; on Bette Midler's Cool Yule; on Libera's Christmas Album; and on Crash Test Dummies' Jingle All the Way.[10]
The sun is shining, the grass is green, The orange and palm trees sway. There's never been such a day in Beverly Hills, L.A. But it's December the twenty-fourth,— And I am longing to be up North—[38]
Charts[edit] Bing Crosby version[edit] Chart (1958–2024) Peakposition Australia (ARIA)[39] 29 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[40] 38 Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[41] 19 Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100)[42] 41 Denmark (Tracklisten)[43] 27 Germany (GfK)[44] 39 Global 200 (Billboard)[45] 22 Global 200 (Billboard)[46] with V 72 Greece International (IFPI)[47] 30 Hungary (Stream Top 40)[48] 20 Ireland (IRMA)[49] 24 Italy (FIMI)[50] 27 Japan (Japan Hot 100) (Billboard)[51] 52 Latvia (LaIPA)[52] 14 Lithuania (AGATA)[53] 40 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[54] 4 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[55] 24 Norway (IFPI Norge)[56] 92 Portugal (AFP)[57] 64 Slovakia (Singles Digitál Top 100)[58] 28 South Korea (Circle)[59]with V 180 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[60] 8 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[61] 40 UK Singles (OCC)[62] 5 US Billboard Hot 100[63] 12 US Billboard Hot 100[64] with V 93 US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[65] 3 US Holiday 100 (Billboard)[66] 5 US Rolling Stone Top 100[67] 16 Michael Bublé version[edit] Chart (2011–2024) Peakposition Australia (ARIA)[68] with Shania Twain 50 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[69] Solo version 34 Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[70] with Bing Crosby 72 Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[70] with Shania Twain 86 Canada AC (Billboard)[71] with Bing Crosby 45 Canada AC (Billboard)[71] with Shania Twain 12 Canada AC (Billboard)[71] 2019 version 12 Croatia International Airplay (Top lista)[72]with Shania Twain 23 Estonia Airplay (TopHit)[73] 51 France (SNEP)[74] 179 Germany (GfK)[75] with Shania Twain 35 Global 200 (Billboard)[76] with Shania Twain 179 Hungary (Stream Top 40)[77] with Shania Twain 13 Italy (FIMI)[78]Solo version 16 Italy (FIMI)[79]with Shania Twain 53 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[80] with Shania Twain 36 Portugal (AFP)[81] 166 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[82] with Shania Twain 35 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[83] with Shania Twain 33 US Bubbling Under Hot 100 (Billboard)[84] with Bing Crosby 24 US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[85] with Bing Crosby 2 US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[85] with Shania Twain 10 US Holiday 100 (Billboard)[86]with Shania Twain 22 US Holiday Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[87]with Bing Crosby 5 US Holiday Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[87]Solo version 49 US Holiday Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[87]2019 version 7 Glee Cast version[edit] Chart (2012–19) Peakposition UK Singles (OCC)[88] 98 US Holiday Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[89] 29 Gwen Stefani version[edit] Chart performance for "White Christmas" Chart (2017–2019) Peak position Canada AC (Billboard)[90] 39 Slovakia (Rádio Top 100)[91] 86 UK Singles (OCC)[92] 62 US Holiday Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[93] 27 Meghan Trainor version[edit] Weekly charts[edit] Chart (2020–2025) Peakposition Poland (Polish Airplay Top 100)[94] 67 US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[95] 1 US Adult Pop Airplay (Billboard)[96] 39 Year-end charts[edit] Chart (2021) Position US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[97] 29 Certifications and sales[edit] Bing Crosby version[edit] Region Certification Certified units/sales Australia (ARIA)[98] Platinum 70,000‡ Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[99] Platinum 90,000‡ Germany (BVMI)[100] Gold 300,000‡ Italy (FIMI)[101] Gold 50,000‡ Sweden (GLF)[102] Gold 25,000^ United Kingdom (BPI)[104] Silver 1,047,349[103] United Kingdom (BPI)[105] Digital sales since 2019 Platinum 600,000‡ United States — 10-12,000,000[7] Streaming Greece (IFPI Greece)[106] Gold 1,000,000† Summaries North America — 25,000,000[107]^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.† Streaming-only figures based on certification alone.
Michael Bublé version[edit] Region Certification Certified units/sales Germany (BVMI)[108] Gold 300,000‡ Italy (FIMI)[109] Platinum 70,000‡ New Zealand (RMNZ)[110] Gold 15,000‡ United Kingdom (BPI)[111] with Shania Twain Gold 400,000‡‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
Other versions[edit]There he been more than 500 recorded versions of the song, in several different languages.[112] The following he received some charting success.
Gordon Jenkins and his Orchestra (with Bob Carroll on lead vocal) released a version on Capitol Records that reached No. 16 on Billboard magazine's pop singles chart in 1942[113] and Charlie Spivak and his Orchestra (with Garry Stevens on lead vocal) released a version for Columbia Records that reached No. 18 on Billboard's pop singles chart[114] as did Freddy Martin and his Orchestra (with Clyde Rogers on lead vocal) for RCA Victor, reaching No. 20 on Billboard's pop singles chart (and again in December 1945, reaching No. 16).[115]
In 1944, Frank Sinatra with a backing orchestration under the direction of Axel Stordahl for Columbia, reached No. 7 on Billboard's pop singles chart (two more times: December 1945, No. 5; December 1946, No. 6)[116] Jo Stafford reached No. 9 on Billboard's pop singles chart in 1946, with backing vocals by the Lyn Murray Singers and backing orchestration by Paul Weston for Capitol.[114] Eddy Howard and his Orchestra released a version on the Majestic label that reached No. 21 on Billboard's pop singles chart the same year[117] while Perry Como, with backing orchestration by Lloyd Shaffer, recorded the song for RCA Victor in 1947 and reached No. 23 on Billboard's pop singles chart; Como recorded a stereo version of the song in 1959.[118]
In 1949, The Rens peaked at No. 9 on Billboard's Rhythm & Blues Records chart in January 1949 on National Records.[119] while Ernest Tubb, with female backing vocals by The Troubadettes on Decca, peaked at No. 7 on Billboard's Country & Western Records chart.[120]
US 7-inch vinyl release (red variant) of The Drifters recordingIn 1952, Mantovani and his orchestra reached No. 23 on Billboard's pop singles chart[115] while The Drifters showcased the talents of lead singer Clyde McPhatter and the bass vocals of Bill Pinkney in 1954, peaking at No. 2 on Billboard's Rhythm & Blues Records chart. It returned to the same chart in the next two years.[121] In February 1954, the Drifters recorded "White Christmas", which was released that November.[122] While the song became a No. 5 R&B hit in 1954, its popularity remained in the black community. The Drifters' rendition of this song can be heard in the films Home Alone and The Santa Clause.[123][124]
In 1953, Bing Crosby sang "White Christmas" in a film made in Paris as part of The Ford 50th Anniversary Show, a two-hour television special broadcast on NBC and CBS.[125]
Andy Williams recorded the song for Columbia in 1963 on The Andy Williams Christmas Album, where it reached No. 1 on Billboard's weekly Christmas Singles chart.[126] It was released in 1968 on Atco Records as a posthumous single from Otis Redding, and reached No. 12 on the Christmas Singles chart.[119] In 1980, Darts's version peaked at No. 48 on the UK singles chart.[citation needed] In 1985, Keith Harris and his puppet Orville the Duck covered the song, later becoming their second and final UK top 40 hit the following year.[citation needed]
Michael Bolton performed it on his 1992 non-holiday album, Timeless: The Classics, where it peaked at No. 73 on Billboard's Hot 100 Airplay chart in January 1993.[127] Garth Brooks version included on his first holiday album, Beyond the Season, peaked at No. 70 on Billboard's Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart in January 1995.[128] In 1998 Martina McBride recorded it for her album White Christmas, charting twice, reaching No. 75 on Billboard's Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart in 1999, and No. 62 on the same chart in 2000[129]
Bette Midler's version, released on her non-holiday album, Bette Midler Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook, reached No. 15 on Billboard's Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart in 2003.[130] The version released on Andrea Bocelli 2009 album, My Christmas, reached No. 16 on the Portuguese Singles Chart.[131] Despite not being released as a single, Marco Mengoni's version, released on the compilation album X Factor – The Christmas Album, charted at No. 13 on the Italian Singles Chart based on digital downloads of the track.[132]
Lady Gaga's version was released on her live EP A Very Gaga Holiday in 2011. It entered the UK Singles Chart at number 87, for the week ending December 3, 2011.[133] The same version also entered the Belgium (Flanders) Singles Chart at number 86,[134] for the week ending dated December 24, 2011, and the Japan Hot 100 singles at number 93.[135] Gaga's cover features an extra verse about a snowman.
The Glee cast's version of the song, sung by Darren Criss and Chris Colfer, entered the UK charts for the first time in 2018, four years after its release, at No. 98.[136]
In 2020, a version by Meghan Trainor, featuring Seth MacFarlane, went to No. 1 on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart.[137]
The Finnish soprano Tarja Turunen's version of the song was featured on her third Christmas album, Dark Christmas, released in 2023.[138]
See also[edit] List of best-selling sheet music List of best-selling singles Notes and references[edit] ^ "'White Christmas' is still the gold standard for holiday singles". Belleville News. Retrieved November 5, 2023. ^ a b Cogan, Jim; Clark, William (2003). Temples of Sound: Inside the Great Recording Studios. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. p. 16. ISBN 0-8118-3394-1. ^ "Best-selling single". Guinness World Records. Retrieved November 29, 2018. ^ a b "Guinness Book of Records, 2007 Edition, page 187" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 15, 2010. Retrieved January 16, 2018. ^ "Guinness Book of Records, 2008 Edition, page 181" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 23, 2011. Retrieved January 16, 2018. ^ a b c "Guinness Book of Records, 2009 Edition, pages 14, 15 & 169" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on November 25, 2011. Retrieved January 16, 2018. ^ a b Campbell, Mary (December 12, 1963). "Old Forite Still Sells". The Evening Independent. p. 10. Retrieved April 2, 2025. ^ a b c Harris, Roy J. Jr. (December 5, 2009). "The Best-Selling Record of All. 'White Christmas' and the reasons it endures". The Wall Street Journal. New York. Retrieved December 6, 2009. ^ "History of ""The Jewel of the Desert"" | Arizona Biltmore, a Waldorf Astoria Hotel". Arizona Biltmore Hotel. Archived from the original on August 13, 2014. Retrieved November 13, 2013. ^ a b c "White Christmas". hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com. Retrieved January 16, 2018. ^ Todd Decker. "Crosby, Bing." Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. Oxford University Press. Web. September 26, 2016. ^ a b c d e John Mueller (1986). Astaire Dancing – The Musical Films. London: Hamish Hamilton. pp. 204, 425. ISBN 0-241-11749-6. ^ Wook Kim (December 17, 2012). "Yule Laugh, Yule Cry: 10 Things You Didn't Know About Beloved Holiday Songs (With holiday cheer in the air, TIME takes a closer look at some of the weird stories behind our forite seasonal tunes)". Time. "White Christmas" (p. 6) ^ "No one dreamed of a 'White Christmas' before this song". PBS NewsHour. December 24, 2015. Retrieved January 16, 2018. ^ Koskoff, Ellen (2016). "Is "White Christmas" a Piece of Jewish Music?". In Ran, Amalia; Morad, Moshe (eds.). Mazal Tov, Amigos! Jews and Popular Music in the Americas. Boston, Massachusetts: Brill. p. 11. ISBN 9789004184473. ^ Lankford, Ronald D. (2013). Sleigh Rides Jingle Bells & Silent Nights: A Cultural History of American Christmas Songs. Gainesville, Florida: University Press of Florida. p. 24. ISBN 978-0813044927. ^ Marsh, De; Propes, Steve (1993). Merry Christmas, Baby: Holiday Music From Bing To Sting. Little, Brown & Co. p. 7. ISBN 978-0756775285. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–2004. Record Research. p. 139. ^ "The Billboard Music Popularity Chart (week ending December 10, 1942)". The Billboard. December 19, 1942. p. 25. ^ Roberts, Did (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 134. ISBN 1-904994-10-5. ^ Weinbender, Nathan (December 22, 2016). "75 years after its premiere, Bing Crosby's 'White Christmas' still enthralls listeners". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane. Retrieved December 13, 2018. ^ "Why Bing Crosby's 'White Christmas' Is the Best Holiday Song Ever". People. Retrieved December 10, 2018. ^ Murrells, Joseph (1978). The book of golden discs. Internet Archive. London : Barrie & Jenkins. ISBN 978-0-214-20512-5. ^ "From Wham to Slade... just how much do these classic Christmas songs earn each festive season?". Radio X. December 21, 2024. Retrieved December 24, 2024. ^ "The American Recording Industry Announces its Artists of the Century". Recording Industry Association of America website (Press release). RIAA. November 10, 1999. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved February 8, 2010. ^ Guinness Book of Records. Guinness World Records. 2009. ISBN 978-1-904994-37-4. Candle in the Wind 1997 is the best-selling single since charts began; however, not of all time. Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" is still recognized as the best-selling single of all time, but since it was released before the start of many charts, its pre-1950s sales are estimated. John's 1997 song has sold the most copies when looking at copies sold since charts began, as verified in Guinness World Records. ^ "GRAMMY Hall Of Fame | Hall of Fame Artists | GRAMMY.com". grammy.com. ^ Todd, Olivier (1990), Cruel April: The Fall of Saigon, W.W. Norton & Company, p. 353. For more information, see Fall of Saigon, the end of the Vietnam War. ^ Kelly, Kate (June 25, 2021). "Evacuation of Vietnam Signaled by Playing of White Christmas". ^ "The Fall of Saigon (1975): The Brery of American Diplomats and Refugees". The National Museum of American Diplomacy. April 29, 2021. ^ "New song list puts 'Rainbow' way up high". CNN. March 7, 2001. Archived from the original on December 28, 2007. Retrieved July 26, 2010. ^ "The Nation's Fourite Christmas Song". ITV. December 22, 2012. ^ Bing Crosby: Crooner of the Century – By Richard Grudens ^ Billboard 15 Dec 1945 – "Bing Crosby – White Christmas / Let's Start The New Year Right" 10" single, (Decca – 18429) ^ "Bing Crosby – White Christmas". Retrieved December 10, 2018 – via 45cat.com. ^ "Bing Crosby – White Christmas". Retrieved December 10, 2018 – via 45cat.com. ^ Complete UK Hit Singles – 1952–2006, Graham Betts, Collins, 2006 – Music – 1088 pages – ("White Christmas" 1998 UK CD single) ^ White Christmas piano solo, Hal Leonard ^ "Bing Crosby – White Christmas". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved December 25, 2024. ^ "Bing Crosby – White Christmas" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved January 3, 2024. ^ "Bing Crosby Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved January 4, 2023. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 5152. týden 2018 in the date selector. Retrieved June 9, 2019. ^ "Track Top-40 Uge 52, 2018". Hitlisten. Retrieved June 9, 2019. ^ "Bing Crosby – White Christmas" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved December 30, 2020. ^ "Bing Crosby Chart History (Global 200)". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2024. ^ "V Chart History (Global 200)". Billboard. Retrieved December 9, 2024. ^ "Official IFPI Charts Digital Singles Chart (International) – Εβδομάδα: 52/2024". Archived from the original on January 2, 2025. Retrieved January 2, 2025. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Stream Top 40 slágerlista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved June 9, 2019. ^ "Official Irish Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 9, 2019. ^ "Top Singoli – Classifica settimanale WK 52" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved December 30, 2023. ^ "Bing Crosby Chart History (Japan Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved November 6, 2023. ^ "Mūzikas patēriņa tops gadu mijā" (in Latvian). LaIPA. Archived from the original on October 10, 2019. Retrieved November 28, 2019. ^ "2024 52-os saitės klausomiausi (Top 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. December 27, 2024. Retrieved December 28, 2024. ^ "Bing Crosby – White Christmas" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved June 9, 2019. ^ "NZ Top 40 Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. December 31, 2018. Archived from the original on December 28, 2018. Retrieved June 9, 2019. ^ "Singel 2025 uke 50". IFPI Norge. Retrieved December 13, 2025. ^ "Bing Crosby / John Scott Trotter Orchestra / The Ken Darby Singers – White Christmas". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved June 9, 2019. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 5152. týden 2017 in the date selector. Retrieved June 9, 2019. ^ "2024 Week 49 Digital Chart". Circle Chart (in Korean). Retrieved December 13, 2024. ^ "Bing Crosby – White Christmas". Singles Top 100. Retrieved June 9, 2019. ^ "Bing Crosby – White Christmas". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved December 30, 2019. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 9, 2019. ^ "Bing Crosby Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved June 9, 2019. ^ "V Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved December 9, 2024. ^ "Bing Crosby Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved June 9, 2019. ^ "Bing Crosby Chart History (Holiday 100)". Billboard. Retrieved June 9, 2019. ^ "Top 100 Songs". Rolling Stone. December 24, 2019. Archived from the original on December 31, 2019. Retrieved December 31, 2019. ^ "Michael Bublé & Shania Twain – White Christmas". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved November 1, 2020. ^ "Michael Bublé – White Christmas" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved January 3, 2025. ^ a b "Michael Buble Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved November 1, 2020. ^ a b c "Michael Buble Chart History (Canada AC)". Billboard. Retrieved November 1, 2020. ^ "HRT Airplay Radio Chart No. 1060 – Issue Date: January 2nd 2023" (PDF). Hrvatska Radiotelevizija. January 3, 2023. Retrieved January 8, 2023. ^ "Top Radio Hits Estonia Weekly Chart: Dec 26, 2024". TopHit. Retrieved December 28, 2024. ^ "Top Singles (Week 52, 2023)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved January 2, 2024. ^ "Michael Bublé & Shania Twain – White Christmas" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved November 1, 2020. ^ "Michael Buble Chart History (Global 200)". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2024. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Stream Top 40 slágerlista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved November 1, 2020. ^ "Top Singoli – Classifica settimanale WK 52" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved December 31, 2022. ^ "Top Singoli – Classifica settimanale WK 52" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved November 1, 2020. ^ "Michael Bublé & Shania Twain – White Christmas" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved November 1, 2020. ^ "Michael Bublé – White Christmas". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved January 21, 2021. ^ "Michael Bublé & Shania Twain – White Christmas". Singles Top 100. Retrieved November 1, 2020. ^ "Michael Bublé & Shania Twain – White Christmas". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved December 29, 2024. ^ "Michael Buble Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved November 1, 2020. ^ a b "Michael Buble Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved November 1, 2020. ^ "Michael Buble Chart History (Holiday 100)". Billboard. Retrieved November 1, 2020. ^ a b c "Michael Buble Chart History (Holiday Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved November 1, 2020. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 31, 2020. ^ "Glee Cast Chart History (Holiday Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved October 31, 2020. ^ "Gwen Stefani Chart History (Canada AC)". Billboard. Retrieved December 27, 2017. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 51,52. týden 2017 in the date selector. Retrieved January 2, 2018. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 29, 2018. ^ "Gwen Stefani Chart History (Holiday Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved November 4, 2020. ^ "OLiS – oficjalna lista airplay" (Select week 13.12.2025–19.12.2025.) (in Polish). OLiS. Retrieved December 22, 2025. ^ "Meghan Trainor Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved December 22, 2020. ^ "Meghan Trainor Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved December 22, 2020. ^ "Adult Contemporary Songs – Year-End 2021". Billboard. January 2, 2013. Retrieved December 3, 2021. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2023 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. ^ "Danish single certifications – Bing Crosby – White Christmas". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved January 20, 2021. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Bing Crosby; 'White Christmas')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved January 5, 2024. ^ "Italian single certifications – Bill Crosby – White Christmas" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved December 2, 2023. ^ "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 1987−1998" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 17, 2011. Retrieved December 3, 2021. ^ Copsey, Rob (September 19, 2017). "The UK's Official Chart 'millionaires' revealed". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 20, 2021. ^ "British single certifications – Bing Crosby – White Christmas". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved December 21, 2012. ^ "British single certifications – Bing Crosby – White Christmas". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved December 11, 2020. ^ "IFPI Charts – Digital Singles Chart (International) – Εβδομάδα: 48/2024" (in Greek). IFPI Greece. Retrieved December 4, 2024. ^ Sickels, Robert (January 1, 2004). The 1940s: American Popular Culture Through History. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 161. ISBN 9780313312991. Retrieved October 17, 2013. the song's North American record sales would ultimately exceed 110 million, with Crosby's version alone selling over 25 million ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Michael Buble; 'White Christmas')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved January 31, 2024. ^ "Italian single certifications – Michael Buble – White Christmas" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved December 21, 2021. ^ "New Zealand single certifications – Michael Buble And Shania Twain – White Christmas". Radioscope. Retrieved December 31, 2024. Type White Christmas in the "Search:" field and press Enter. ^ "British single certifications – Michael Buble & Shania Twain – White Christmas". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved December 15, 2023. ^ "ASCAP Announces Top 25 Holiday Songs of the Decade". ASCAP. November 23, 2009. Retrieved December 9, 2011. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 42. ISBN 0-89820-161-6. ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 59. ISBN 0-89820-161-6. ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 47. ISBN 0-89820-161-6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 58. ISBN 0-89820-161-6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 41. ISBN 0-89820-161-6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 29. ISBN 0-89820-161-6. ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 55. ISBN 0-89820-161-6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 62. ISBN 0-89820-161-6. ^ CD sleeve: Billboard Greatest Christmas Hits (1955 – Present), 1989 Rhino Records Inc. ^ "Fans danced while they guessed". ^ "Jubilee! Historic Columbia celebrates African-American heritage this weekend with singing, art, dance, drama". The Times and Democrat. Orangeburg, South Carolina. August 25, 2004. Retrieved December 31, 2019. ^ "Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame member brings quartet to Jackpot". The Times-News. Twins Falls, Idaho. January 10, 1997. Retrieved December 21, 2020. ^ Gross, Ben (June 13, 1953). "What's On?". Daily News. New York, NY – via Newspapers.com. ^ "Andy Williams' Yule Mark: Tops 2 Charts". Billboard. Cincinnati, Ohio. December 21, 1963. Retrieved January 1, 2020. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 22. ISBN 0-89820-161-6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 23. ISBN 0-89820-161-6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 48. ISBN 0-89820-161-6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 49. ISBN 0-89820-161-6. ^ "White Christmas-bianco Natale by Andrea Bocelli – Music Charts". acharts.us. Retrieved January 16, 2018. ^ "Italian Charts – Marco Mengoni – White Christmas (song)". Italiancharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved December 21, 2012. ^ "Official Singles Chart on 27/11/2011". Official Charts. Retrieved December 10, 2024. ^ "Lady Gaga - White Christmas - ultratop.be". www.ultratop.be. Retrieved December 10, 2024. ^ "Lady Gaga | Biography, Music & News". Billboard. Retrieved December 10, 2024. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 29, 2018. ^ "Adult Contemporary". Billboard. December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 8, 2020. ^ D, Denise (December 25, 2023). "REVIEW: Tarja – Dark Christmas". Tuonela Magazine. Retrieved May 13, 2025. External links[edit] Library of Congress essay on Crosby's version on the National Recording Registry. vteIrving BerlinMusicalsTheatre Annie Get Your Gun As Thousands Cheer Call Me Madam The Canary The Century Girl The Cocoanuts The Cohan Revue of 1918 Face the Music Holiday Inn Louisiana Purchase Miss Liberty Mr. President Music Box Revue Stop! Look! Listen! This Is The Army Top Hat Watch Your Step White Christmas Wise Guy Yip Yip Yaphank Ziegfeld Follies Film Alexander's Ragtime Band Annie Get Your Gun Blue Skies Call Me Madam Carefree The Cocoanuts Easter Parade Follow the Fleet Hallelujah Holiday Inn On the Avenue Second Fiddle There's No Business Like Show Business This Is the Army Top Hat White Christmas Songs1910s "Alexander's Ragtime Band" "At the Devil's Ball" "Daddy, Come Home" "Follow the Crowd" "For Your Country and My Country" "God Bless America" "Goodbye, France" "I Want to Go Back to Michigan" "I'm Gonna Pin My Medal on the Girl I Left Behind" "I've Got My Captain Working for Me Now" "Let's All Be Americans Now" "Mandy" "The Near Future" "Oh! How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning" "Play a Simple Melody" "A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody" "San Francisco Bound" "Someone Else May Be There While I'm Gone" "Stay Down Here Where You Belong" "That International Rag" "That Mysterious Rag" "They Were All Out of Step But Jim" "When I Lost You" "You'd Be Surprised" 1920s "All Alone" "All by Myself" "Always" "Blue Skies" "How About Me?" "I Love a Piano" "Lazy" "Puttin' On the Ritz" "Remember" "Say It with Music" "The Song Is Ended (but the Melody Lingers On)" "What'll I Do" "With You" 1930s "Change Partners" "Cheek to Cheek" "Easter Parade" "Get Thee Behind Me Satan" "Heat We" "How Deep Is the Ocean?" "How's Chances?" "I Never Had a Chance" "I Used to Be Color Blind" "I'm Putting All My Eggs in One Basket" "I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm" "Isn't This a Lovely Day?" "It's a Lovely Day Tomorrow" "Let Yourself Go" "Let's Face the Music and Dance" "Let's He Another Cup of Coffee" "No Strings (I'm Fancy Free)" "Now It Can Be Told" "Reaching for the Moon" "Say It Isn't So" "Slumming on Park Avenue" "Supper Time" "This Year's Kisses" "Top Hat, White Tie and Tails" "You're Laughing at Me" 1940s "All of My Life" "Any Bonds Today?" "Anything You Can Do" "A Couple of Swells" "Doin' What Comes Natur'lly" "The Girl That I Marry" "Happy Holiday" "Heen Watch the Philippines" "I Got Lost in His Arms" "I Got the Sun in the Mornin' (and the Moon at Night)" "I'm an Indian Too" "Let's Take an Old-Fashioned Walk" "Moonshine Lullaby" "My Defenses Are Down" "Steppin' Out with My Baby" "There's No Business Like Show Business" "They Say It's Wonderful" "White Christmas" "Who Do You Love, I Hope?" "You Can He Him" "You Can't Get a Man with a Gun" "You Keep Coming Back Like a Song" 1950s "The Best Thing for You (Would Be Me)" "Count Your Blessings" "It's a Lovely Day Today" "Sisters" "You're Just in Love" Related Ellin Berlin (wife) Mary Ellin Barrett (daughter) vteBing Crosby singlesDiscography1920s "My Blue Heen" (with Paul Whiteman) "Ol' Man River" (with Paul Whiteman) "Mississippi Mud" (with Paul Whiteman) "Silent Night, Holy Night" (with Paul Whiteman) "Makin' Whoopee" (with Paul Whiteman) "Let's Do It" (with Dorsey Brothers) "Louise" 1930s "Three Little Words" (with Duke Ellington) "I Surrender Dear" (with Gus Arnheim) "Just a Gigolo" "At Your Command" "Stardust" "Goodnight, Sweetheart" "Where the Blue of the Night (Meets the Gold of the Day)" (Bing's Theme Song) "Waltzing in a Dream" "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?" "I Don't Stand a Ghost of a Chance with You" "Temptation" "Did You Ever See a Dream Walking?" "June in January" "Love Is Just Around the Corner" "I Wished on the Moon" "It Ain't Necessarily So" "I Can't Escape from You" "Pennies from Heen" "Silent Night" "Adeste Fideles" "Sweet Leilani" "Blue Hawaii" "Never in a Million Years" "Sail Along, Silv'ry Moon" "My Reverie" "You Must He Been a Beautiful Baby" "God Bless America" "Ciribiribin (They're So in Love)" (with Andrews Sisters) 1940s "Tumbling Tumbleweeds" "Only Forever" "It's Always You" "New San Antonio Rose" (with Bob Crosby) "Dolores" "Deep in the Heart of Texas" (with Woody Herman) "Easter Parade" "White Christmas" "Moonlight Becomes You" "Sunday, Monday, or Always" "People Will Say We're in Love" (with Trudy Erwin) "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" (with Trudy Erwin) "Pistol Packin' Mama" (with Andrews Sisters) "I'll Be Home for Christmas" "Jingle Bells" (with Andrews Sisters) "Poinciana" "I Love You" "I'll Be Seeing You" "Swinging on a Star" "Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby" (with Andrews Sisters) "Hot Time in the Town of Berlin" (with Andrews Sisters) "Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral (That's an Irish Lullaby)" "Amor" "Long Ago (and Far Away)" "Don't Fence Me In" (with Andrews Sisters) "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive" (with Andrews Sisters) "You Belong to My Heart" "Along the Najo Trail (with Andrews Sisters) "On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe" "If I Loved You" "It's Been a Long, Long Time" (with Les Paul Trio) "I Can't Begin to Tell You" "Symphony" "The Bells of St. Mary's" "McNamara's Band" "Sioux City Sue" "South America, Take It Away" "(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66" (with Andrews Sisters) "Night and Day" "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" (with Andrews Sisters) "Galway Bay "Ballerina" "How Soon (Will I Be Seeing You?)" "Now Is the Hour" "But Beautiful" "Far Away Places" "Careless Hands" "Riders in the Sky" "Some Enchanted Evening" "Dear Hearts and Gentle People" "Mule Train" 1950s "Quicksilver" (with Andrews Sisters) "He I Told You Lately That I Love You?" (with Andrews Sisters) "Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy" "Play a Simple Melody" (with Gary Crosby) "Sam's Song " (with Gary Crosby) "La Vie en rose" "All My Love" "Beyond the Reef" "Harbor Lights" "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" "A Marshmallow World" "Sparrow in the Treetop" (with Andrews Sisters) "Gone Fishin'" (with Louis Armstrong) "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening" (with Jane Wyman) "The Isle of Innisfree" "Zing a Little Zong" (with Jane Wyman) "Silver Bells" (with Carol Richards) "Down by the Riverside" (with Gary Crosby) "Young at Heart" "Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep" "Stranger in Paradise" "In a Little Spanish Town" (with Buddy Cole Trio) "True Love" (with Grace Kelly) "Now You Has Jazz" (with Louis Armstrong) "Well, Did You Evah!" (with Frank Sinatra) 1970s "That's What Life Is All About" 1980s "Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy" (with Did Bowie) vteFrank Sinatra singlesDiscographyColumbia singles(1939–1940) "It's Funny to Everyone but Me" "On a Little Street in Singapore" "Ciribiribin" "All or Nothing at All" RCA Victor singles(1940–1942) "Imagination" "I'll Be Seeing You" "East of the Sun (and West of the Moon)" "I'll Never Smile Again" "The One I Love (Belongs to Somebody Else)" "Our Love Affair" "We Three (My Echo, My Shadow and Me)" "Stardust" "Dolores" "It's Always You" "Oh! Look at Me Now" "Without a Song" "Let's Get Away from It All" "This Love of Mine" "Blue Skies" "Pale Moon (An Indian Love Song)" "Embraceable You" "Just as Though You Were Here" "Take Me" "In the Blue of Evening" "How About You?" "There Are Such Things" Bluebird singles(1942–1943) "Night and Day" "The Night We Called It a Day" "The Song Is You" Columbia singles(1943–1953) "Close to You" "You'll Never Know" "Sunday, Monday, or Always" "People Will Say We're in Love" "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" "A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening" "White Christmas" "Saturday Night (Is the Loneliest Night of the Week)" "I Dream of You (More Than You Dream I Do)" "Ol' Man River" "Stormy Weather" "When Your Lover Has Gone" "Dream" "If I Loved You" "You'll Never Walk Alone" "Mighty Lak' a Rose" "Nancy (with the Laughing Face)" "America the Beautiful" "Day by Day" "Full Moon and Empty Arms" "Soliloquy (Part 1 & 2)" "Begin the Beguine" "Silent Night" "Adeste Fideles" "Jingle Bells" "Oh! What It Seemed to Be" "September Song" "Five Minutes More" "Sweet Lorraine" "Time after Time" "Mam'selle" "Almost Like Being in Love" "Tea for Two" "My Romance" "So Far" "A Fellow Needs a Girl" "But Beautiful" "I've Got a Crush on You" "All of Me" "Nature Boy" "Everybody Loves Somebody" "My Melancholy Baby" "Autumn in New York" "Why Can't You Behe?" "Some Enchanted Evening" "Bali Ha'i" "Let's Take an Old Fashioned Walk" "I Only He Eyes for You" "The Old Master Painter" "Peachtree Street" "Goodnight, Irene" "Nevertheless (I'm in Love with You)" "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" "We Kiss in a Shadow" "April in Paris" "I Could Write a Book" "The Birth of the Blues" Capitol singles(1953–1961) "I'm Walking Behind You" "I've Got the World on a String" "My One and Only Love" "South of the Border (Down Mexico Way)" "I Love You" "Young at Heart" "Don't Worry 'bout Me" "Three Coins in the Fountain" "The Gal That Got Away" "Someone to Watch Over Me" "Melody of Love" "Learnin' the Blues" "Love and Marriage" "(Love Is) The Tender Trap" "You're Sensational" "True Love" "Well, Did You Evah!" "Mind If I Make Love to You?" "Hey! Jealous Lover" "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" "All the Way" "Chicago (That Toddlin' Town)" "Witchcraft" "Mistletoe and Holly" "French Foreign Legion" "High Hopes" "Old MacDonald" "My Blue Heen" "I'll Remember April" "I Love Paris" Reprise singles(1961–1983) "Granada" "I'll Be Seeing You" "The One I Love (Belongs to Somebody Else)" "I'm Getting Sentimental Over You" "Polka Dots and Moonbeams" "Without a Song" "Stardust" "Come Rain or Come Shine" "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" "Me and My Shadow" "Call Me Irresponsible" "I He Dreamed" "He Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" "My Kind of Town" "Softly, as I Lee You" "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" "The Little Drummer Boy" "It Was a Very Good Year" "Strangers in the Night" "Summer Wind" "You Make Me Feel So Young" "That's Life" "The September of My Years" "Somethin' Stupid" "The World We Knew (Over and Over)" "My Way of Life" "My Way" "Goin' Out of My Head" "Something" "Bein' Green" "Send In the Clowns" "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown" "Theme from New York, New York" "Here's to the Band" "To Love a Child" Qwest singles(1983–1984) "Teach Me Tonight" "Mack the Knife" "It's All Right with Me" "Until the Real Thing Comes Along" Compositions "This Love of Mine" "Sheila" "Peachtree Street" "Take My Love" "I'm a Fool to Want You" "Mistletoe and Holly" "Mr. Success" Category vteAcademy Award for Best Original Song1934–1940 "The Continental" Music: Con Conrad Lyrics: Herb Magidson (1934) "Lullaby of Broadway" Music: Harry Warren Lyrics: Al Dubin (1935) "The Way You Look Tonight" Music: Jerome Kern Lyrics: Dorothy Fields (1936) "Sweet Leilani" Music and lyrics: Harry Owens (1937) "Thanks for the Memory" Music: Ralph Rainger Lyrics: Leo Robin (1938) "Over the Rainbow" Music: Harold Arlen Lyrics: E. Y. Harburg (1939) "When You Wish Upon a Star" Music: Leigh Harline Lyrics: Ned Washington (1940) 1941–1950 "The Last Time I Saw Paris" Music: Jerome Kern Lyrics: Oscar Hammerstein II (1941) "White Christmas" Music and lyrics: Irving Berlin (1942) "You'll Never Know" Music: Harry Warren Lyrics: Mack Gordon (1943) "Swinging on a Star" Music: Jimmy Van Heusen Lyrics: Johnny Burke (1944) "It Might as Well Be Spring" Music: Richard Rodgers Lyrics: Oscar Hammerstein II (1945) "On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe" Music: Harry Warren Lyrics: Johnny Mercer (1946) "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" Music: Allie Wrubel Lyrics: Ray Gilbert (1947) "Buttons and Bows" Music: Jay Livingston Lyrics: Ray Evans (1948) "Baby, It's Cold Outside" Music and lyrics: Frank Loesser (1949) "Mona Lisa" Music and lyrics: Ray Evans and Jay Livingston (1950) 1951–1960 "In the Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening" Music: Hoagy Carmichael Lyrics: Johnny Mercer (1951) "High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin')" Music: Dimitri Tiomkin Lyrics: Ned Washington (1952) "Secret Love" Music: Sammy Fain Lyrics: Paul Francis Webster (1953) "Three Coins in the Fountain" Music: Jule Styne Lyrics: Sammy Cahn (1954) "Love Is a Many Splendored Thing" Music: Sammy Fain Lyrics: Paul Francis Webster (1955) "Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)" Music and lyrics: Jay Livingston and Ray Evans (1956) "All the Way" Music: Jimmy Van Heusen Lyrics: Sammy Cahn (1957) "Gigi" Music: Frederick Loewe Lyrics: Alan Jay Lerner (1958) "High Hopes" Music: Jimmy Van Heusen Lyrics: Sammy Cahn (1959) "Never on Sunday" Music and lyrics: Manos Hatzidakis (1960) 1961–1970 "Moon River" Music: Henry Mancini Lyrics: Johnny Mercer (1961) "Days of Wine and Roses" Music: Henry Mancini Lyrics: Johnny Mercer (1962) "Call Me Irresponsible" Music: Jimmy Van Heusen Lyrics: Sammy Cahn (1963) "Chim Chim Cher-ee" Music and lyrics: Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman (1964) "The Shadow of Your Smile" Music: Johnny Mandel Lyrics: Paul Francis Webster (1965) "Born Free" Music: John Barry Lyrics: Don Black (1966) "Talk to the Animals" Music and lyrics: Leslie Bricusse (1967) "The Windmills of Your Mind" Music: Michel Legrand Lyrics: Alan and Marilyn Bergman (1968) "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" Music: Burt Bacharach Lyrics: Hal Did (1969) "For All We Know" Music: Fred Karlin Lyrics: Robb Royer and Jimmy Griffin (1970) 1971–1980 "Theme from Shaft" Music and lyrics: Isaac Hayes (1971) "The Morning After" Music and lyrics: Al Kasha and Joel Hirschhorn (1972) "The Way We Were" Music: Marvin Hamlisch Lyrics: Alan and Marilyn Bergman (1973) "We May Never Love Like This Again" Music and lyrics: Al Kasha and Joel Hirschhorn (1974) "I'm Easy" Music and lyrics: Keith Carradine (1975) "Evergreen (Love Theme from A Star Is Born)" Music: Barbra Streisand Lyrics: Paul Williams (1976) "You Light Up My Life" Music and lyrics: Joseph Brooks (1977) "Last Dance" Music and lyrics: Paul Jabara (1978) "It Goes Like It Goes" Music: Did Shire Lyrics: Norman Gimbel (1979) "Fame" Music: Michael Gore Lyrics: Dean Pitchford (1980) 1981–1990 "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" Music and lyrics: Burt Bacharach, Carole Bayer Sager, Christopher Cross and Peter Allen (1981) "Up Where We Belong" Music: Jack Nitzsche and Buffy Sainte-Marie Lyrics: Will Jennings (1982) "Flashdance... What a Feeling" Music: Giorgio Moroder Lyrics: Keith Forsey and Irene Cara (1983) "I Just Called to Say I Love You" Music and lyrics: Stevie Wonder (1984) "Say You, Say Me" Music and lyrics: Lionel Richie (1985) "Take My Breath Away" Music: Giorgio Moroder Lyrics: Tom Whitlock (1986) "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" Music: Franke Previte, John DeNicola and Donald Markowitz Lyrics: Franke Previte (1987) "Let the River Run" Music and lyrics: Carly Simon (1988) "Under the Sea" Music: Alan Menken Lyrics: Howard Ashman (1989) "Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man)" Music and lyrics: Stephen Sondheim (1990) 1991–2000 "Beauty and the Beast" Music: Alan Menken Lyrics: Howard Ashman (1991) "A Whole New World" Music: Alan Menken Lyrics: Tim Rice (1992) "Streets of Philadelphia" Music and lyrics: Bruce Springsteen (1993) "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" Music: Elton John Lyrics: Tim Rice (1994) "Colors of the Wind" Music: Alan Menken Lyrics: Stephen Schwartz (1995) "You Must Love Me" Music: Andrew Lloyd Webber Lyrics: Tim Rice (1996) "My Heart Will Go On" Music: James Horner Lyrics: Will Jennings (1997) "When You Believe" Music and lyrics: Stephen Schwartz (1998) "You'll Be in My Heart" Music and lyrics: Phil Collins (1999) "Things He Changed" Music and lyrics: Bob Dylan (2000) 2001–2010 "If I Didn't He You" Music and lyrics: Randy Newman (2001) "Lose Yourself" Music: Eminem, Jeff Bass and Luis Resto Lyrics: Eminem (2002) "Into the West" Music and lyrics: Fran Walsh, Howard Shore and Annie Lennox (2003) "Al otro lado del río" Music and lyrics: Jorge Drexler (2004) "It's Hard out Here for a Pimp" Music and lyrics: Juicy J, Frayser Boy and DJ Paul (2005) "I Need to Wake Up" Music and lyrics: Melissa Etheridge (2006) "Falling Slowly" Music and lyrics: Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová (2007) "Jai Ho" Music: A. R. Rahman Lyrics: Gulzar (2008) "The Weary Kind" Music and lyrics: Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett (2009) "We Belong Together" Music and lyrics: Randy Newman (2010) 2011–2020 "Man or Muppet" Music and lyrics: Bret McKenzie (2011) "Skyfall" Music and lyrics: Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth (2012) "Let It Go" Music and lyrics: Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez (2013) "Glory" Music and lyrics: John Stephens and Lonnie Lynn (2014) "Writing's on the Wall" Music and lyrics: James Napier and Sam Smith (2015) "City of Stars" Music: Justin Hurwitz Lyrics: Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (2016) "Remember Me" Music and lyrics: Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez (2017) "Shallow" Music and lyrics: Lady Gaga, Mark Ronson, Anthony Rossomando and Andrew Wyatt (2018) "(I'm Gonna) Love Me Again" Music: Elton John Lyrics: Bernie Taupin (2019) "Fight for You" Music: D'Mile and H.E.R. Lyrics: H.E.R. and Tiara Thomas (2020) 2021–present "No Time to Die" Music and lyrics: Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell (2021) "Naatu Naatu" Music: M. M. Keerani Lyrics: Chandrabose (2022) "What Was I Made For?" Music and lyrics: Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell (2023) "El Mal" Music: Clément Ducol and Camille Lyrics: Clément Ducol, Camille, and Jacques Audiard (2024) Authority control databases InternationalVIAFGNDNationalUnited StatesSwedenOtherMusicBrainz work