The Chipmunk Song

The Chipmunks

About The Chipmunk Song

"The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)" is a novelty Christmas song written by Ross Bagdasarian Sr. (under the stage name of David Seville) in 1958. Bagdasarian sang and recorded the song, varying the tape speeds to produce high-pitched "chipmunk" voices, but the recording credits the vocals to The Chipmunks, Seville's cartoon band. The song won three Grammy Awards in 1958, for Best Comedy Performance, Best Children's Recording, and Best Engineered Record (non-classical).  


Year:
2009
113 
#1

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The Chipmunks

Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks and billed for their first two decades as the Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band and media franchise first created by Ross Bagdasarian for novelty records in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks named Alvin, Simon, and Theodore. Bagdasarian provided the group's voices by producing sped-up recordings of his own, a technique pioneered on the successful "Witch Doctor". Later in 1958, Bagdasarian released the similarly engineered "The Chipmunk Song" for which he came up with the chipmunk characters and their human father, attributing the track to them. David Seville and the Chipmunks released several more records over the following decade unti… more »

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11 facts about this song

Origin
"The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)" is a novelty Christmas song written by Ross Bagdasarian Sr. (under the stage name of David Seville) in 1958.
Characters
The song is performed by the fictitious rodent band Alvin and the Chipmunks, which consists of Alvin, Simon, and Theodore.
Chart Performance
The song was a major hit on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart in 1958 and 1959, becoming the only Christmas record to reach No. 1 on the chart.
Grammy Wins
In 1959, it won three Grammy Awards for Best Comedy Performance, Best Children's Recording, and Best Engineered Record (non-classical).
Record Sales
The original release of the song sold 4.5 million copies in seven weeks and it has sold a total of 25 million copies to date.
Film Debut
The song was featured in both the Chipmunks' 20-minute debut on The Alvin Show (1961) and in their first CGI/live action film, Alvin and the Chipmunks (2007).
Animation
The original animation for the song had the Chipmunks' attire as follows: Alvin wore a red cap and sweater, Simon wore a blue cap and sweater, and Theodore wore a green cap and sweater.
Unique Recording Technique
The distinctive high-pitched voices were achieved by recording the vocal tracks at a slow speed, then speeding them up for playback.
Album Release
The song was released on the 1959 album "Let's All Sing with The Chipmunks", which was the debut album of Alvin and the Chipmunks.
Multiple cover versions
Due to its popularity, the song has been covered numerous times by a variety of artists and groups, including The Offspring, Queens of the Stone Age, and Tegan and Sara.
Cultural Impact
It is a perennial holiday favorite and is often played on radio stations during the Christmas season.

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    The Chipmunk Song

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    Top Hot 100 Songs 1959

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