<p id=”par-1_51″>“Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer” is one of the most famous Christmas <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/music/”>songs</a> of all time. For reasons beyond all understanding, Paul McCartney made it <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/paul-mccartney-2-types-of-songs-wouldnt-even-try-make.html/”>into a reggae song</a>. There are a few reasons why you have never heard this cover, even though it was the B-side of a famous Yuletide hit.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-rudolph-the-red-nosed-reggae-connects-to-paul-mccartney-s-wonderful-christmastime”>‘Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reggae’ connects to Paul McCartney’s ‘Wonderful Christmastime’</h2>
<p id=”par-2_87″>During a 2022 interview with <a href=”https://www.paulmccartney.com/news/you-gave-me-the-answer-wonderful-christmastime-special” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>PaulMcCartney.com</a>, the <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/bruce-springsteen-told-paul-mccartney-disliked-silly-love-songs-1st.html/”>“Silly Love Songs” singer</a> was asked if he had any memories of Christmas caroling. “I can’t remember ever having done it, so I probably didn’t,” he replied. “The fun thing about Christmas caroling, that probably would have influenced my decision not to do it, was that my dad always used to make fun of them. He’d say, ‘Here’s a shilling to go sing in the next street.’ He was not a big fan of Christmas carols. I quite like them!”</p>
<p id=”par-3_88″>Since Paul was a big fan of Yuletide music, <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/pop-singer-likes-paul-mccartneys-wonderful-christmastime-more-the-beatles-songs.html/”>he wrote “Wonderful Christmastime.”</a> “I like the idea of Christmas songs purely because they only come around at Christmas!” he said. “They remind us of the fun atmosphere of the whole season, and when I was writing ‘Wonderful Christmastime,’ I was trying to capture that party aspect. I did hope it would keep coming back — which it has. Sometimes people will go into a shop and hear it a little too much, but I don’t care! I’m happy!”</p>
<p id=”par-4_55″>The original release of “Wonderful Christmastime” included a B-side. It was a reggae-inspired cover of “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer” called “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reggae (Instrumental).” What a choice! Paul was known for making novelty songs in the 1970s, and you can tell “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reggae (Instrumental)” is a novelty just by reading its title.</p>
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<iframe title=”Wings ‘Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reggae'” width=”925″ height=”520″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/JyYdcf1CE3Q?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-why-this-version-of-rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer-doesn-t-work”>Why this version of ‘Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer’ doesn’t work</h2>
<p id=”par-5_37″>Despite its title, “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reggae (Instrumental)” isn’t a straight-up reggae song. It combines reggae with elements of classical music. It also goes over the entirety of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” in less than two minutes. </p>
<p id=”par-6_51″>What’s good about “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reggae (Instrumental)?” Well, it’s probably for the better than Paul made it an instrumental. One can only imagine how awful it’d be if he tried to sing “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” in a phony Caribbean accent. That would be a failure in every conceivable way. </p>
<p id=”par-7_80″>However, “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reggae (Instrumental)” accidentally confronts us with the fact that “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” never had a great melody. Mariah Carey’s <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/mariah-careys-all-i-want-for-christmas-is-you-originally-rock-song.html/?swcfpc=1″>“All I Want for Christmas Is You”</a> has a great melody. Darlene Love’s “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” has a great melody. “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” doesn’t have a great melody and it mostly works because of its storyline. There’s a reason why the song was adapted into a Christmas special and “Winter Wonderland” was not. </p>
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<iframe loading=”lazy” title=”Paul McCartney – Wonderful Christmastime” width=”925″ height=”520″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/94Ye-3C1FC8?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<div class=”related-article related-article–simple”>
<span class=”related-article-flag”>Related</span>
<p class=”related-article__title”>
<a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/everyone-hates-paul-mccartneys-wonderful-christmastime.html/”>
Why Everyone Hates Paul McCartney’s ‘Wonderful Christmastime’ </a>
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<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-paul-mccartney-didn-t-put-much-effort-into-the-cover”>Paul McCartney didn’t put much effort into the cover</h2>
<p id=”par-8_53″>Perhaps the worst thing about Paul’s cover is that it feels pretty slapdash. At one point, it sounds like a large object fell over in the studio and Wings didn’t bother to edit out the resultant background noise. That lack of effort is part of why Wings isn’t as legendary as The Beatles.</p>
<p id=”par-9_17″>“Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reggae (Instrumental)” is worth listening to once out of curiosity — and never again.</p>