Otis Redding

Merry Christmas, Baby

Dec 25, 2023

Good Morning!

Today we’re listening to “Merry Christmas, Baby” by Otis Redding

Today we’re spinning one of my all-time favorite Christmas songs. It never seems to get enough airplay during the holidays, and I’m not even sure I’ve heard it on the radio (or in a store) this year.

I’m doing my part to try and change that.

Many artists have tried to play this song (seriously, I think it’s something like 80), but this one is the clear frontrunner. Bruce Springsteen’s take is a close second.

Wherever this morning finds you, and however you choose to celebrate, I hope it’s a time of wonder and one filled with joy.

And good music, of course.

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“Merry Christmas, Baby” rose to No. 3 on Billboard’s Jukebox R&B chart, and quickly became an American Christmas standard. More than 80 artists have covered it, from Elvis to Springsteen, Otis Redding to Billy Idol, Christina Aguilera to CeeLo Green. Jeff Beck and Frankie Valli joined forces for a version released just last fall.
Yet this particular holiday gift has always been wrapped in doubt. It was, and remains, credited to Lou Baxter and Johnny Moore. But it was the performance of Charles Brown, the Three Blazers’ pianist and vocalist, that defined the song—and he insisted that he wrote it, too. In the postwar music industry, such intellectual-property disputes were as common as mediocre B sides, but I’ve uncovered evidence that Brown’s claim was legitimate.

You can read more about the song’s controversial origin story here.

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