Christmas Songs #7: Santa Baby by Eartha Kitt (1953)

Number 7: Festive Christmas Songs
Good Housekeeping: November 30, 2019

Santa Baby 
Eartha Kitt (1953)

This cheeky song by Eartha Kitt is about wanting extravagant Christmas gifts. Even though this is a holiday tune, it's one of her most well-known songs ever. 

Eartha Kitt was a sultry nightclub performer who earned a record deal with RCA in 1953. 

Eartha Kitt

At the end of 1953, Joan Javits, the niece of US Senator Jacob Javits, wrote "Santa Baby" for Kitt with Philip Springer, and it became a holiday hit and Kitt's most famous song. Along with "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus," this was one of the first Christmas novelty songs. 

Santa Baby 
Eartha Kitt


Santa Baby 
Madonna (1987)

Madonna recorded a cover of "Santa Baby" for the 1987 charity album A Very Special Christmas. It was released on November 12, 1987, by A&M Records. 

Madonna

Madonna heightened her range by half an octave in this version of "Santa Baby" to "reach the aggressively cutesy 'baby voice' that the song has come to be associated with."  

Santa Baby 
Madonna



"Santa Baby" Mash-up 
ft. The Goglia Sisters (2018)

Imagine "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" set to a 1990s hip-hop beat. It's the sort of dynamic mash-up that you can expect at a Postmodern Jukebox (PMJ) Christmas show. "A Very Postmodern Christmas" spotlights 11 performers, including horns, a rhythm section, and four vocalists. PMJ is a collective rather than a band, with the lineup often changing.

Emily and Juliet Goglia

"Every time you come out to a PMJ show, it's going to be a different group of people," said Kubota, who's been with the group since 2014. "It keeps it fresh." Vocalists and sisters Emily and Juliette Goglia currently act as emcees.   

Read more: Greenville Journal

YouTube comments:
  • Incredible! It is awesome!
  • Ahahahahahah! Them arguing in the middle of the song. Brilliant!
  • "Think of all the fellas that I haven't kissed." "Not that many." "Wow."
  • Saw these two with PMJ last night in Biloxi, MS. They freaking killed it!
  • That was simply awesome! The performance, the tone, and the energy. Perfect!
"Santa Baby" Mash-up 
ft. The Goglia Sisters

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