One of the best original country Christmas songs released last year.
I’ll be honest, I’m really not a fan of Christmas music in general, though I do appreciate some of the sad Christmas music that country artists seem to have a knack for writing… the Jonas Brothers also put out a new Christmas song this year that’s kind of a banger, but I digress…
In 2024, several country artists put out some good original stuff, including Megan Moroney with “All I Want for Christmas is a Cowboy,” which I actually enjoy listening to this time of year. And Riley Green also pit out a great one called “Christmas To Me,” which is a nostalgic holiday tune about his most special and cherished Christmas memories.
He gave a beautiful performance of it during the CMA Country Christmas TV special last night, and it’s far from your typical Christmas song in that it’s reflective, warm and far from a lot of the gimmicky, cheesy types of holiday jingles a lot of artists put out this time of year.
Written by Riley along with frequent collaborator Erik Dylan, it finds Riley reminiscing on the Christmas season and some of his most special, and funny, memories.
It’s steeped in Southern charm and has such a nostalgic undertone in terms of the lyrics, and feels so simple yet relatable as he sings about his mom about to “come apart” because she just found out about his sisters new tattoo (what’s Christmas without a little family drama, right?):
“And all them in-laws are showin’ up late
For a five star meal on a paper plate
The sound of bare foot feet runnin’ through the house
The football games just about to start
About the time momma has a come-apart
Cause sisters new tattoo she just found out about
There’s a string of lights all tangled around the tree
That’s Christmas to me”
The song immediately took me back to Christmas Day with my own family growing up, driving down my grandparents gravel road to a warm house and the special glow of the holiday season, which says to me that the writing itself is absolutely on point.
There’s something so beautiful about the simplicity of the stories and writing, because I think many of us relate to Riley’s Christmas memories in how special the mundane traditions really are, and that can be hard to capture with this kind of music because so many people go for the cheesy, over-the-top kind of style instead of being true to what is real for so many people during the holidays.
It’s not ever perfect, but that’s what keeps it fun, and if you haven’t already, you should certainly add this one to your Christmas playlist:
The studio cut:
