December Song (I Dreamed of Christmas)

"December Song (I Dreamed of Christmas)"
Single by George Michael
B-side	"Jingle (A Musical Interlewd)"
Released	December 25, 2008 (Free release) December 14, 2009 (Commercial release)[1] December 13, 2010 (2010 rerelease)[2] December 12, 2011 (2011 rerelease)[3]
Format	CD single, digital download
Recorded	2008 (Free version) 2009 (Commercial versions)
Genre	Pop, Christmas music
Length	3:37
Label	Island Records (2009/2010); Aegean (2011)
Writer(s)	George Michael, David Austin
Producer(s)	George Michael
George Michael singles chronology
"This Is Not Real Love" (2006) "December Song (I Dreamed of Christmas)" (2008/2009/2010/2011) "True Faith" (2011)

"December Song (I Dreamed of Christmas)" is a Christmas single released by George Michael on December 14, 2009. The track was originally announced during one of the last dates on Michael's 25 Live tour. It was available for free on George Michael's official website on December 25–26, 2008.

The track was written by George Michael and longtime writing partner David Austin.

During the Gerry Ryan show, David Austin confirmed that the song had originally been written with the Spice Girls in mind. After a few failed deadlines, the song was going to be given to Michael Bublé but George Michael decided to keep it for himself.

The song features a sample from the Frank Sinatra recording "The Christmas Waltz".

George Michael performed the song live on December 13 for the final of the 2009 series of The X Factor. The day after the performance, physical copies of the song were sold out in one day, forcing George Michael's record label to print new copies. Many fans have commented on forums of their annoyance at not being able to buy a physical copy of the single, possibly also giving the song a lower chart position than its true potential. The song debuted at number fourteen on the UK Singles Chart.

Music video

The accompanying music video was Michael's second animated one, with 2002's "Shoot the Dog" being the first. The video featured Michael as a boy, and it shows his view of Christmas from a child's perspective; shown by the visualization of sunshine, lightbulbs, and motherly love.

Formats and track listings

CD Single-EP/Digital Single-EP'

1. "December Song (I Dreamed of Christmas)" – 3:35
2. "Jingle (A Musical Interlude)" – 3:35
3. "Edith & The Kingpin" (Live at Abbey Road) – 3:46
4. "Praying for Time" (Live at Abbey Road) – 4:57
5. "December Song (I Dreamed of Christmas)" (Video) – 3:56 [A]

• [A] CD single only.

The first commercial release was in 2009, with two releases following in 2010 and 2011, the latter being the first to be released on iTunes (which excluded the video).

• The limited editions of the 2009 and 2010 CD releases included a Christmas card.^[4]

Charts

Chart (2009)	Peak position
Austrian Singles Chart[5]	63
Belgian Wallonia Ultratip Chart[5]	26
Dutch Single Top 100[5]	18
European Hot 100 Singles[6]	85
German Singles Chart[7]	37
Irish Singles Chart[8]	40
Swedish Singles Chart[5]	43
UK Singles Chart[9]	14

References

5. George Michael - December Song (I Dreamed of Christmas) (song). Retrieved May 2, 2011.
6. European Hot 100 Singles. Retrieved May 2, 2011.
7. Single-Chartverfolgung. Retrieved May 2, 2011.
8. The Irish Charts. Retrieved May 2, 2011.
9. Top 75 Releases. Retrieved May 2, 2011.