The earliest known recorded version of the song was by banjoist Harry Reser and his band on October 24, 1934 (Decca 264A)[6] featuring Tom Stacks on vocal, the version shown in the Variety charts of December 1934. The song was a sheet music hit, reaching number 1. The song was also recorded for Victor Records (catalog No. 25145A) on September 26, 1935, by Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra with vocals by Cliff Weston and Edythe Wright.[7]
A rock version by Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band was recorded on December 12, 1975, at C. W. Post College in Brookville, New York, by Record Plant engineers Jimmy Iovine and Thom Panunzio.[14][15] This version borrows the chorus refrain from the 1963 recording by the Crystals.[16] It was first released as a track on the 1981 Sesame Street compilation album, In Harmony 2, as well as on a 1981 promotional, radio-only, 7-inch single (Columbia AE7 1332).[17][18] Four years later, it was released as the B-side to "My Hometown", a single off the Born in the U.S.A. album.[19] Springsteen's rendition of the song has received radio airplay perennially at Christmastime for years; it appeared on Billboard magazine's Hot Singles Recurrents chart each year from 2002 to 2009 due to seasonal air play. Live performances of the song often saw the band encouraging the audience to sing some of the lyrics with—or in place of—the band's vocalists (usually the line "you'd better be good for goodness sake", and occasionally the key line "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town" as well). Sometimes, concert crowds would sing along with the entire song, and the band, who were known to encourage this behavior for the song, would do nothing to dissuade those audiences from doing so, instead welcoming the crowds' enthusiasm. This version remains a Springsteen concert favorite during the months of November and December (often concluding the show), and the band is among the few that keep it in their roster of songs during the holidays.
In October 2015, EMI Music Publishing lost the rights to J. Fred Coot's stake in the song. EMI had earned the rights to the song via Leo Feist's publishing company in the 1980s.[26]
In September 2017, the family of Haven Gillespie sued Memory Lane Music Group for $700,000, asking for an 85% stake in "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town".[27]
Sebastián Yatra recorded a Spanish version for Christmas 2019 and released it as a single.[28] The song charted in Spain and on Billboard'sHot Latin Songs chart and was certified gold by the RIAA in the US.[29]
Chartsedit
The Supremes versionedit
Chart performance for "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" by the Supremes
^"Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town Composed by Haven Gillespie / J. Fred Coots". AllMusic. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
^Collins, Ace (October 5, 2010). Stories Behind the Greatest Hits of Christmas. Zondervan. ISBN 9780310597476. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
^Collins, Ace (October 5, 2010). "4 Santa Claus Is Coming to Town". Stories Behind the Greatest Hits of Christmas. Zondervan. pp. 224. ISBN 978-0310327950. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
^Whitburn, Joel (1986). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954. Wisconsin, USA: Record Research Inc. p. 189. ISBN 0-89820-083-0.
^The Richest Songs in The World (Television production). BBC. 2012.
^"The Online Discographical Project". 78discography.com. Retrieved December 30, 2017.
^"The Online Discographical Project". 78discography.com. Retrieved December 30, 2017.
^Whitburn, Joel (1986). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954. Wisconsin, U.S.: Record Research Inc. p. 113. ISBN 0-89820-083-0.
^"The 4 Seasons Chart History: Hot 100". Billboard Magazine. Retrieved November 21, 2019. Santa Claus Is Coming To Town / The 4 Seasons / Peaked at #23 on 12.29.1962[dead link]
^Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits: Eighth Edition. Record Research. p. 237.
^"Billboard HITS OF THE WORLD". Billboard. January 1, 1965. p. 23.
^Margasak, Peter (December 12, 2012). "12 O'Clock Track: Joseph Spence, "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town"". Chicago Reader.
^"Joseph Spence - Living On The Hallelujah Side". Discogs. 1980. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
^Springsteen, Bruce. "Santa Claus Is Comin to Town". 45cat.com. Columbia. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
^Bruce Springsteen brought 'Santa' to C.W. Post 45 years ago
^Times, Music (December 20, 2013). "12 Days of Christmas: 4 Best Versions of 'Santa Claus Is Coming To Town'".
^"Various – In Harmony 2". discogs.com. Discogs. Retrieved September 18, 2023.
^"Record Details: Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town by Bruce Springsteen". 45cat.com. 45cat. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
^"The Greatest Rock Roll Christmas Songs Pictures - Bruce Springsteen, 'Santa Claus Is Coming To Town'". Rolling Stone. December 19, 2007. Retrieved December 22, 2013.
^Trust, Gary (April 2, 2013). "Ask Billboard: Belinda's Back, JT Too, Mariah Carey's Album Sales & More". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved May 11, 2013.
^Owings, Lisa (August 15, 2016). Youtube. Abdo. ISBN 9781680781953. OCLC 944088090.
^"Navidades - Luis Miguel: Overview". AllMusic / Rovi. Retrieved May 14, 2013.
^"Navidades - Luis Miguel: Awards". AllMusic / Rovi. Retrieved May 14, 2013.
^"Pentatonix's 10 Best Christmas Songs". Billboard. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
^"EMI loses Santa Claus Is Coming To Town in termination rights case - Complete Music Update".
^"New lawsuit filed over Santa Claus Is Coming To Town royalties - Complete Music Update".
^"Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town - Single by Sebastián Yatra". November 26, 2020. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
^"Billboard Global 200: Week of January 6, 2024". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
^"Official IFPI Charts – Digital Singles Chart (International) – Week: 52/2019". IFPI Greece. Archived from the original on January 9, 2020. Retrieved January 14, 2019.
^"Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Stream Top 40 slágerlista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
^"Michael Bublé – Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
^"HRT Airplay Radio Chart No. 1060 - Issue Date: January 2nd 2023" (PDF). Hrvatska Radiotelevizija. January 3, 2023. Retrieved January 8, 2023.
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – SINGLES DIGITAL – TOP 100 and insert 201851 into search. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
^"Michael Bublé: Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
^"Top Singles (Week 52, 2022)" (in French). SNEP. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
^"Michael Bublé – Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
^"Official IFPI Charts – Digital Singles Chart (International) – Week: 52/2018". IFPI Greece. Archived from the original on January 14, 2019. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
^"Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved December 16, 2022.
^"Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Stream Top 40 slágerlista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
^"Mūzikas patēriņa tops gadu mijā" (in Latvian). LAIPA. Archived from the original on October 10, 2019. Retrieved November 28, 2019.
^"Michael Bublé – Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
^"Michael Bublé – Santa Claus Is Coming To Town". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select SINGLES DIGITAL - TOP 100 and insert 201851 into search. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
^"Michael Bublé – Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" Canciones Top 50. Retrieved June 9, 2019.
^"Michael Bublé – Santa Claus Is Coming To Town". Singles Top 100. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
^"Michael Bublé – Santa Claus Is Coming To Town". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
^"OLiS – oficjalna lista airplay" (Select week 16.12.2023–22.12.2023.) (in Polish). OLiS. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
^"Frank Sinatra – Santa Claus Is Coming To Town". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
^"Italian single certifications – Frank Sinatra – Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved January 11, 2023. Select "2023" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
^"British single certifications – Crystals – Santa Claus Is Coming to Town". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
^"New Zealand single certifications – Michael Jackson & Jackson Five – Santa Claus Is Coming to Town". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
^"British single certifications – Michael Jackson & Jackson Five – Santa Claus Is Coming to Town". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved December 23, 2022.
^"Danish single certifications – Michael Buble – Santa Claus Is Coming to Town". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
^"Italian single certifications – Michael Buble – Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved January 23, 2019. Select "2021" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
^"Portuguese single certifications – Michael Buble – Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" (PDF) (in Portuguese). Associação Fonográfica Portuguesa. Retrieved February 7, 2023.
^"British single certifications – Michael Buble – Santa Claus Is Coming To Town". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved December 10, 2021.
^"Danish single certifications – Bruce Springsteen – Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved January 3, 2023.
^"Italian single certifications – Bruce Springsteen – Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved January 5, 2021. Select "2020" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
^"British single certifications – Bruce Springsteen – Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
^"American single certifications – Bruce Springsteen – Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town Live @ CW Post". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved May 26, 2022.