All of Garth Brooks’ best work comes from the heart, and this is especially true of his Christmas classics. To celebrate the season, we’ve gathered his top 5 Christmas songs of all time for your listening pleasure.
Tis the season to be jolly, and country icon Garth Brooks is as jolly as they come. Throughout his career, Brooks has produced country music’s most successful breadth of work, but he’s also responsible for some of the best Christmas songs & renditions of all time.
Indeed, some of his best selling work are his Christmas albums. His first, Beyond the Season hit in 1992. Season was the best-selling holiday album of that year in the U.S., with nearly 2 million units sold. Since then, it’s gone on to triple that number.
Fascinatingly, Brooks has sold more albums than Elvis Presley himself, even. In fact, in the grand scheme of music history, Brooks has only been outsold by The Beatles. According to Business Insider, his near-unmatched sales are up to 156 million units in 2020:
- The Beatles — 183 million units
- Garth Brooks — 156 million units
- Elvis Presley — 146.5 million units
All of this considered, let’s take a look back at Garth Brooks’ absolute best Christmas renditions & originals of all time and celebrate the magic that is Garth Brooks and Christmas combined.
5. “Marshmallow World” -Garth Brooks & Trisha Yearwood
For Disney’s Magical Christmas Celebration in 2016, Garth Brooks took a starring role in the concert. Thankfully, his wife and fellow country icon Trisha Yearwood was there to join him. Their chemistry and talent combined leads to one of the best renditions of “Marshmallow World”, elevating the simple song to new heights.
4. “Merry Christmas Means I Love You”
During the same year’s Disney Parks Magical Christmas Celebration, Garth Brooks performed one of his own Christmas classics. The original song comes from his first full album recorded with wife Trisha Yearwood. Which was, fittingly, their 2016 Christmas album, Christmas Together.
The song itself carries a wonderful message. Within, Brooks sings about the joint meaning behind every holiday season celebration: love. It’s the purest, trademark Garth of his original Christmas efforts – and as such secures a spot on our list.
“But if love is the gift that you’re giving
Whatever you call it is cool
No matter what your nation or god
So happy holidays, Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, Yule
Season’s best, Feliz Navidad”
3. “Baby It’s Cold Outside” – Garth Brooks & Trisha Yearwood
As far as duets are concerned, there’s none more famous than “Baby It’s Cold Outside”. The Christmas staple is a unique, old-fashioned pop hit that has been covered by nearly every big name in every genre.
The sweetest of them all, though, comes from country’s cutest couple. The true love between Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood gives the song new life and true meaning. Performing together during New York City’s biggest holiday event, Christmas in Rockefeller Center, the couple’s chemistry and talent again shine through for this perfect cover.
Indeed, 2016 was a huge year for these two, as their aforementioned Christmas album, Christmas Together, saw them performing at both Disney’s biggest holiday celebration and NYC’s in 2016, among many other promotional performances.
2. “The Old Man’s Back in Town” – Garth Brooks, Kenny Rogers, Trisha Yearwood
Throwing further back for the duo shows the two at a time when they were simply unmarried friends. Brooks and Yearwood had recorded and performed together for decades before marrying in 2005. One such instance comes in the form of Kenny Rogers Christmas Special: Keep Christmas With You. In the 1993 made-for-TV event, five kids from across the country audition to sing with Kenny Rogers in a Christmas special in Branson, Missouri.
The special also happens to produce one of the best original country Christmas songs to boot, “The Old Man’s Back in Town.” Garth Brooks takes the lead for the song with his signature stylings. Backing him up are Kenny Rogers and future wife, Trisha Yearwood.
The recording of the song below comes from the Christmas special itself, and is absolutely worth a watch to see these three at their prime together in 1993 – each having an absolute blast.
1. “White Christmas” – Garth Brooks
For our part, there’s no other Christmas rendition from Brooks that could take this #1 spot on our list.
“White Christmas” is a timeless classic, and as such has the distinction of being the world’s best-selling single of all time, period. In fact, since Irving Berlin wrote it in 1942, the version made into legend by Bing Crosby boast sales in excess of 50 million copies worldwide. And once you add in other notable performances of the song from unmatched icons like Elvis Presley and Garth Brooks – that number reaches well over 100 million.
Below, Brooks performs “White Christmas’ as only he can. The performance also comes from Kenny Rogers’ 1993 Christmas Special and is one mullet-laden treasure that all Garth Brooks fans should add to their Christmas traditions.
Brooks timeless, iconic country crooning tambour is perfect for the song, and does it justice like few others ever have. For this reason (and many others), Garth Brooks’ “White Christmas” is our #1 Garth Brooks Christmas Song of All Time.
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