A bleak Christmas for holiday singles

By Paul Sexton

LONDON (Billboard) - As the festive season approaches, the best-selling Christmas songs of the past will probably have a yuletide chart encore. But missing from the holiday revelry will be much in the way of new Christmas-themed releases from mainstream pop acts.

Some of the blame rests with the enormously popular TV talent show "The X Factor," which for the fourth consecutive year will release its winner's debut single right before Christmas, effectively rendering the once-pitched battle for the season's No. 1 a one-horse race.

"The biggest artist in the world couldn't beat 'The X Factor,'" says Rupert Adams, a spokesman for bookmaker William Hill. "The stars steer clear, as it would be slightly embarrassing to be beaten by a performer that, in their view, is not a serious artist."

The fight for the No. 1 single at Christmas has long been a major sales driver and media attention grabber in the United Kingdom, with national press, broadcasters and bookmakers alike speculating on the likely winner of the race. In years past, rock and pop stars ranging from Slade and Mud to Wham and Shakin' Stevens vied for the holiday top spot by releasing Christmas songs.

But 2008 doesn't herald any seasonal releases from their present-day counterparts, prompting retailers and radio programmers to grumble that labels are missing out by keeping their pop heavyweights from the Christmas party.

"They may be missing a trick in not trying to make more of the opportunity the Christmas singles market still represents," says John Hirst, rock/pop manager at market-leading retailer HMV. "I sense this year that the wider public and the media would be prepared to back a song that could challenge the dominance of 'X Factor.'"

Although none of their respective debut singles carried a seasonal theme, "X Factor" winners have snared the Christmas No. 1 in each of the last three years. Leon Jackson was on top last year with "When You Believe," Leona Lewis reigned in 2006 with "A Moment Like This," and Shayne Ward ruled in 2005 with "That's My Goal."

But while the TV show appears to have a tight grip on the peak of the yuletide chart, demand for Christmas-themed singles remains strong, bringing many previous favourites back to the charts.