All I Want For Christmas Is You

Year: 1994

Written By: Mariah Carey, Walter Afanasieff

• Lyrics
• Leave a comment

Mariah Carey's contemporary Christmas classic has become a December staple since its release in 1994. It's success can be put down to the uptempo tune, the traditional values of love over material goods and all manner of decorative Christmas devices (sleigh bells, chimes and bells aplenty) that give the song an undeniably seasonal feel. The result is something that sounds like a Phil Spector number but one with a modern twist. Carey appeared aware of this fact as she recorded a video for the song that mimicked the 60's Spector girl-group the Ronnettes. The delightful promo was shot in black and white and is imbued with all the charm of Carey's song. 'All I Want For Christmas Is You' also has an alternate video, shot in the style of a home video, which featured Carey's then husband Tommy Mottola dressed up as Santa Claus.

'All I Want For Christmas Is You' was written by Carey and Walter Afanasieff for her 1994 'Merry Christmas' album and it became the album's successful lead single, selling just under 2 million digital copies alone. The sequel to 'Merry Christmas', called 'Merry Christmas II You', arrived in 2010 and included a new version, which was not all that different, of 'All I Want For Christmas Is You'.

'All I Want For Christmas Is You' has been covered by several artists since its arrival in the mid 1990's. Samantha Mumba's 2008 version is faithful to the original but lacks its vitality and charm despite her solid vocals. Olivia Olsen's cover was included in the 2003 film 'Love Actually' and comes close to capturing the magic of the original. The Australian pop band Newsboys did a serviceable job of giving 'All I Want For Christmas is You' a boyband-sounding makeover in 2010 but managed to strip it of much of the traits that gave the original such a wholesome Christmas feel.