‘Blue Christmas’ was written by Billy Hayes and J.W. Johnson and first performed by Doyle O’Dellin 1948. It’s a classic tale of holiday romance and now very popular with Country and Western fans.
Elvis Presley first covered the song in 1957 on his third studio album and first Christmas special LP “Elvis’ Christmas Album” though it was not released as a single for him until 1964 when it subsequently had considerable commercial success.
That’s the video everyone knows and love, but there’s another version of ‘Blue Christmas’ that NEVER made it out of the studio…
Watch the original form Elvis’ televised performance in December 1968 called “The Comeback Special.” He’d had little success that year with some failed releases, and this was an opportunity to show the world what he was still made of. The show was of course hugely popular and reinforced why he was called the King:
After you’ve seen that (above) now, watch singer Martia McBride produced a special “one-time” video that features her incredible voice alongside Elvis in on stunning duet. This rare version was never released on any of her albums or CDs. You should watch this (below) and then compare it to the original and see if you agree, they’re both uniquely beautiful:
