Emmy winner for a children's television show Doye O'Dell was first to record "Blue Christmas" (Johnson - Hayes) as a single in 1948.

The Elvis Presley November release in the 1957 E.P. "Elvis' Christmas Album" was just in time for the holiday season and solidified the tune as his for generations. Still it wasn't until 1964 that "Blue Christmas" was released as a single. It was the A side to "Wooden Heart" that appears elsewhere in this blog. In 1965 "Bluer Christmas" was released with "Santa Claus Is Back In Town" on the B side and it was issued that way for many years later.