Posted on 12/24/2023 4:59:49 PM PST by nickcarraway
Lee also shared thoughts on her close friendship with Dolly Parton.
Brenda Lee has been celebrating the renewed success of her holiday classic “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree.” Her latest promotion for her first ever No.1 came in the form of an exclusive interview with People Magazine.
In the conversation, Lee recalled where she was when the song landed at No.1. She said, “Oh, good lord. It was so surreal! I still don’t believe it. Even though I know the song is great and written by a great man, after all these years it’s just surreal.”
Brenda also shared some thoughts on how the music video came together, explaining her relationship with two of the visual’s stars, Trisha Yearwood and Tanya Tucker. “They‘re two of my best friends. We asked them to do that and said, ‘Okay, we’re turning the cameras on. Y’all do what you wanna do!’ There was no script and no direction, but I guess it turned out okay.”
Lee also offered insight on her relationship with another country legend, Dolly Parton. “Dolly and I, we talk a lot,” she said. “I tell you what — she’s great. I’ve known Dolly since we were both 17 or 18 years old. We go back a long, long way. Her husband and my husband went to school together. It’s a good relationship.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Lee shared a recent experience on a flight in which she actually stood up and performed her iconic Christmas tune. “We had a lot of turbulence on that flight, and everybody was really nervous,” she explained. “Somebody said, ‘Brenda, get up and sing ‘Rockin’!’ Before I’d even thought about it, I was up singing. I don’t like flying, but that was a fun time for me.”
Lastly, Lee also discussed the consistent success of “Rockin’.” She said, “I knew it was a great song and I was happy to get it, but I never thought that it would be my signature song. Never.”
Buy or stream A Rockin’ Christmas with Brenda Lee.
I had assumed, incorrectly, that she was probably no longer with us, since I really haven’t heard her named mentioned for years now. 😋
She calls into the SXM 60s channel sometimes- very sharp and fun.
She was a very good singer.
I thought the same until recently - ever since I was a kid the song was mentioned with a picture of her being middle aged and I knew the song was very old...did not realize until this year she was only 13 at the time of recording so that is how she is still with us 65 years later.
Anyone??? Am I the only one that wondered?
‘Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree’
OMG! I HATE that song! Its not rock its some kind of hillbilly trash!
I kicked my dog last night while Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree, down in the holler with Betty-Jean.
It wasn't until I looked her up and saw that she was only 79, that I realized my parents had enjoyed someone that when they were in their early 30s, and only only a few after I even knew them myself. 🤣
If she was 13 when she hit the scene, I would have been 5 and totally uninterested in music really. I liked all things about cars at that age, and it around the time when the family had been transferred to Japan.
Friday at our company Christmas party the DJ started to play Rockin Around the Christmas tree and four big guys that work in the warehouse started to rough him up.
My date looked at me and said “Albert! Do something! Aren’t you going to help?”.
I told her “Relax babe. Those warehouse guys have got this.”
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