All I Want for Christmas Is You (Vince Vance & the Valiants song)
| "All I Want for Christmas Is You" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Vince Vance & the Valiants | ||||
| from the album All I Want for Christmas Is You | ||||
| B-side | "Exceptional Man" | |||
| Released | 1989 | |||
| Studio | Masterphonics Studio 6; Nashville, Tennessee | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:47 | |||
| Label | Valiant 92689 | |||
| Songwriters |
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| Producers |
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| Vince Vance & the Valiants singles chronology | ||||
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"All I Want for Christmas Is You" is a Christmas song recorded by American novelty act Vince Vance & the Valiants. Initially released as a single in 1989, Vince Vance's version of the song has charted several times on the Billboard country singles charts. It is one of two records to chart for Vince Vance & the Valiants, the other being "Bomb Iran".
Content
[edit]"All I Want for Christmas Is You" is a mid-tempo in compound duple meter, featuring lead vocals from Lisa Burgess Stewart, who now records under the name Lisa Layne.[1][2] In it, the singer explains that she does not want Christmas decorations nor gifts from Santa Claus. Instead, all she wants for Christmas is her lover. The melody used in the song is based on Bobby Vinton's number 9 pop hit single from early 1964, "My Heart Belongs to Only You", with a few minor alterations.[3]
Reception
[edit]In his review of the album All I Want for Christmas Is You, AllMusic reviewer Jason Birchmeier referred to the song as a "holiday favorite within the country community during the '90s" but noted that the rest of the album was not "remotely worth bothering with."[4]
Having received frequent rotation on country radio and adult contemporary radio during the Christmas season since its 1993 re-release, "All I Want for Christmas Is You" is also the most-played country music Christmas song.[5]
The song was also made into a music video directed by Steve Dunning for Aries Productions, located in Arlington, Texas.[6]
Lawsuit
[edit]On June 3, 2022, Andy Stone, who portrayed Vince Vance, filed a copyright lawsuit against Mariah Carey, alleging that she "exploited" and made "undeserved profits" off his song with her song "All I Want for Christmas Is You", which was published five years after his.[7] The lawsuit was dropped without prejudice in November 2022;[8] Stone re-filed the lawsuit in November 2023.[9] In March 2025, U.S. District Judge Mónica Ramírez Almadani ruled in Carey's favor, saying that Stone had failed to prove the two songs were "substantially similar" and that he and his attorneys made frivolous arguments; she also ordered Stone and his lawyers to pay part of Carey's legal fees.[10]
Chart performance
[edit]The song first charted in early 1994 based on airplay from the 1993 Christmas season, peaking at number 55 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) chart on the week of January 8, 1994.[11] It re-entered the same chart in December 1994, reaching a new peak of number 52 on the week of January 7, 1995.[11] The song re-entered the Billboard country singles chart again every January afterward, each time peaking higher than the last; it did not chart in the 1998-1999 holiday season but charted again for the final time in January 2000, reaching its overall peak position on the country singles chart of number 31. Although it never made the country singles chart again, it peaked at number 23 on the Billboard Hot 100 Recurrent Airplay chart in 2002 (despite having never entered or bubbled under the Billboard Hot 100 or Hot 100 Airplay charts), and has re-appeared on the Hot Country Recurrents chart every Christmas since late 2000/early 2001.
| Chart (1994–2002) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks[9] | 31 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 Recurrent Airplay[9] | 23 |
Kelly Clarkson version
[edit]| "All I Want for Christmas Is You" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Kelly Clarkson | ||||
| Released | November 14, 2020 | |||
| Studio | ||||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:46 | |||
| Label | Atlantic | |||
| Songwriters | ||||
| Producer | Jesse Shatkin | |||
| Kelly Clarkson singles chronology | ||||
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In 2020, Kelly Clarkson released a version of the song as a standalone single.[13][14] She also later included it on her 2021 album, When Christmas Comes Around...[15]
Charts
[edit]| Chart (2020) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada AC (Billboard)[16] | 30 |
Release history
[edit]| Region | Date | Format | Label | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Various | November 14, 2020 | Atlantic | [17] |
References
[edit]
- ^ Shannon, Gary. "Lisa Layne—The Voice Behind 'All I Want for Christmas is You' Vince Vance and the Valiants", KHLA, December 4, 2012
- ^ Vance, Vince. All I Want for Christmas is You Archived 2017-12-25 at the Wayback Machine, http://www.icompositions.com/, December 26, 2016
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 63. ISBN 0-89820-161-6.
- ^ Birchmeier, Jason. "All I Want for Christmas Is You review". Allmusic. Retrieved December 23, 2008.
- ^ "Most-Played Christmas Songs On Country Radio Listed". KWTX. 2 December 2008. Archived from the original on 9 January 2009. Retrieved 23 December 2008.
- ^ "Vince Vance & the Valiants: All I Want for Christmas Is You". CMT. Archived from the original on December 27, 2008. Retrieved December 23, 2008.
- ^ "Mariah Carey sued for copyright over 'All I want for Christmas is You'". BBC News. June 4, 2022. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
- ^ "Mariah Carey's All I Want For Christmas is You copyright case dropped". BBC News. November 2, 2022. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
- ^ a b c Donahue, Bill (November 1, 2023). "Mariah Carey Sued Again Over 'All I Want for Christmas is You' — By The Same Guy". Billboard. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
- ^ Savage, Mark (March 20, 2025). "Mariah Carey wins copyright case over Christmas hit". BBC News. Retrieved March 20, 2025.
- ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (2008). Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc. p. 244. ISBN 978-0-89820-177-2.
- ^ a b When Christmas Comes Around... (booklet). Kelly Clarkson. Atlantic Records. 2021. 864083-4.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ "Kelly Clarkson is releasing new cover of 'All I Want for Christmas is You' -- and no, it's not the Mariah Carey song". Good Morning America. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
- ^ "Kelly Clarkson Covers 'All I Want for Christmas Is You' (No, Not That One)". Billboard. November 13, 2020. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
- ^ Zemler, Emily (September 23, 2021). "Kelly Clarkson Welcomes the Holidays With 'Christmas Isn't Canceled (Just You)'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
- ^ "Kelly Clarkson Chart History (Canada AC)". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
- ^ "All I Want for Christmas Is You". Spotify. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
