The Set List

Christmas Albums Filling Soundscan's Stocking

Josh Groban's "Noel" leads the Christmas charge as a full 26 albums with holiday themes make it into the top 200 this week. Many of the titles are available exclusively at certain retailers, but since the altering of the top 200 requirements - we'll call it the Eagles Rule - the flood has come in holiday titles. SoundScan, for whatever reason, is not posting cumulative totals for several of the albums, leaving the dirty work of doing math to us. And Taylor Swift's disc, for some inexplicable reason, was left off last week's list where it would have landed at No. 88. It is No. 46 this week. At the end of the season, we'll tally it up to determine who is No. 2 in the most unwatched sales race of the year. Noticeably absent from the list are any hip-hop albums. Seems like it has been a long time since Run-DMC's "Christmas in Hollis," the only hip-hop holiday tune with any staying power. 
The top 26 (year to date) of holiday albums released this season are:
Josh Groban - Noel (1.5 million sold)
Mannheim Steamroller - Christmas Song (289,000)
Toby Keith - A Classic Christmas (151,000)
Various - Stockings By the Fire (142,000)
Disney Channel Holiday (141,000)
Kidz Bop Kids - Coolest Kidz Bop Christmas (58,000)
Relient K - Let It Snow Baby (45,000)
Elvis Presley - Home for the Holidays (42,000)
Soundtrack - This Christmas (42,000)
Trans-Siberian Orchestra - EP (41,000)
Taylor Swift - Sounds of the Season (39,000)
Michael W. Smith - It's a Wonderful Christmas (39,000)
Mannheim Steamroller - Christmas Traditions (38,000)
Various - Hear Something Country Christmas (35,000)
Randy Travis - Songs of the Season (33,000)
Various - WOW Gospel Christmas (27,000)
Marie Osmond - Magic of Christmas (26,000)
Jim Brickman - Homecoming (23,000)
Elliot Yamin - Sounds of the Season (21,000)
Jars of Clay - Christmas Songs (19,000)
Yolanda Adams - What a Wonderful Time (14,000)
Various - Christmas No. 1's (13,000)*
Various - Celtic Ladies Christmas (6,000)*
Patti LaBelle - Miss Patti's Christmas (6,000)*
KT Tunstall - Sounds of the Season (5,000)*
Mormon Tabernacle Choir - Like an Angel (5,000)*
* first week of release

Eurythmics Make Sleigh Bells Ring

I say Christmas, you say Eurythmics. Bit of a surprise from ASCAP today: Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart's version of "Winter Wonderland" has racked up the most performances on radio over the last five years of any ASCAP tune.It is the first time "Winter Wonderland" has topped this particular chart, which also counts versions by  Guy Lombardo And His Royal Canadians, the Andrews Sisters, Perry Como, Jewel and Air Supply.
ASCAP's top 10 most performed holiday songs for the past five years, with the most popular recording:
1. Winter Wonderland (Felix Bernard, Richard B. Smith)
Performed by Eurythmics
2.The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire) (Mel Tormé, Robert Wells)
Performed by Nat "King" Cole
3.Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas (Ralph Blane, Hugh Martin)
Performed by the Pretenders
4.Santa Claus Is Coming To Town (Fred Coots, Haven Gillespie)
Performed by Bruce Springsteen
5. White Christmas(Irving Berlin)
Performed by Bing Crosby
6. Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! (Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne)
Performed by Aaron Neville
7. Jingle Bell Rock (Joseph Carleton Beal, James Ross Boothe)
Performed by Bobby Helms
8. Sleigh Ride (Leroy Anderson, Mitchell Parish)
Performed by the Ronettes
9. Little Drummer Boy (Katherine K. Davis, Henry V. Onorati, Harry Simeone)
Performed by the Harry Simeone Chorale & Orchestra
10.Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer (Johnny Marks)
Performed by Gene Autry