Chris Rea in 1988, the year the re-recorded version of "Driving Home for Christmas" was released as a single and reached number 53 in the UK charts. (Photo: Michael Putland/Getty Images)
New large survey:
“Driving Home for Christmas”, written and performed by British singer Chris Rea, is Norwegians’ favorite Christmas song. This is according to a recent survey of a representative sample of Norwegians conducted by YouGov on behalf of TONO. Newer Norwegian Christmas songs are also making a strong showing, with “Nordnorsk julesalme” in 6th place, and two more in the Top 10.
/ 05/12/2023 / Willy MartinsenThe survey, in which Norwegians were asked about their relationship with Christmas music, was conducted by the market analysis company YouGov on behalf of TONO in the period November 15-20 among a representative sample of Norwegians over the age of 18.
– “Driving home for Christmas”, written and performed by Chris Rea, is the Christmas favorite of most Norwegians. This is followed by “O Helga Natt” and “All I Want for Christmas is You”, before “Deilig er Jorden” in 4th place, which is the Norwegian-language Christmas song that most Norwegians say is a Christmas favorite, says Willy Martinsen, Communications Director at TONO.
"Driving Home for Christmas" is also a favorite among Norwegian radio stations. In 2022, the song was played more than 5,000 times, according to music reports TONO receives from Norwegian radio stations.
Although Christmas songs and hymns have followed Norwegians through generations, there are also newer Norwegian Christmas songs among Norwegians' Christmas favorites.
– It is very nice to see that newer Norwegian Christmas songs have also taken their place among Norwegians' Christmas favorites. Among the 10 most beloved Christmas songs are Trygve Hoff's "Nordnorsk julesalme", Tore Aas and Eivind Skeie's "En stjerne skinner i natt" and Amund Enger and Jan Vincents Johannessen's "Himmel på jord", says Martinsen.
When we look at who the favorites are among different age groups and parts of the country, we find some interesting findings:
– Driving Home for Christmas scores high in all age groups, but the younger part of the population, from 18 to 39, on the other hand, has Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas is You" as their clear favorite. O Helga Natt tops among those over 50. We also see that from Trøndelag and northwards, "Nordnorsk julesalme" is the clear Christmas favorite, and scores significantly higher than all other Christmas songs. Here there is simply no competition, says Martinsen.
93 percent of respondents say they celebrate Christmas. They were also asked if they usually go to Christmas concerts. Here, 34 percent answered in the affirmative.
– 34 percent of Norwegians who celebrate Christmas, or around 1,8 million of us, have a tradition of going to Christmas concerts. Even more probably go to a Christmas concert occasionally. For us at TONO, who represent those who write melodies and lyrics, it is of course very nice to see how important Christmas music and Christmas concerts are for Norwegians, says Martinsen.
Even if you don't go to Christmas concerts, chances are you're still playing Christmas music at home. 74 percent of those who celebrate Christmas confirm that they listen to Christmas music as part of their Christmas preparations. And if you don't like Christmas music at all, well, you're in a solid minority. Only 7 percent of those who celebrate Christmas say they don't like Christmas music.
1. Driving home for Christmas (Chris Rea/Warner Chappell)
2. O Helga Natt (Anders Fredrik Augustin, Adolphe Adam)
3. All I Want for Christmas is You (Mariah Carey, Walter Afanasieff/Sony ATV, Universal MCA, Kobalt Music)
4. Delicious is the Earth (Berhard Severin Ingemann, Conrad Nicolai Schwach)
5. Fairytale of New York (Shane MacGowan, Jem Finer/Universal Music, Sony ATV)
6. Northern Norwegian Christmas Carol (Trygve Hoff/Norwegian sheet music service)
7. A Star Shines Tonight (Tore Ass, Eivind Skeie/Cantando)
8. Heaven on Earth (Amund Enger, Jan Vincents Johannessen/Warner Chappell Norway)
9. Last Christmas (George Michael/Warner Chappell)
10. It´s beginning to look a lot like Christmas (Meredith Willson/Kobalt Music)
Also read other Christmas music-related articles at TONO:
About the survey:
The survey was conducted by the market analysis company YouGov on behalf of TONO among a representative sample of Norwegians over the age of 18, a total of 1011 CAWI interviews, during the period November 15 to 20.
About TONO
TONO was founded in 1928 and is a non-profit cooperative owned and managed by composers, lyricists and music publishers, and which manages the economic copyrights in their musical works. TONO grants permission for the use of protected music on radio, TV, the internet, concerts, cinema, etc. for a fee, and transfers its financial results each year to the rights holders of music that has been performed publicly. TONO has more than 40,000 members, but also works for millions of authors and music publishers from around the world. TONO gives music creators an economic basis to create new music, and collects and simplifies the licensing of protected music to music users. TONO had a turnover of NOK 864,6 million in 2022.
For more information:
Willy Martinsen, Communications Director at TONO, Willy.martinsen@tono.no, tel. +47 909 65 254