Luca DeLucia ’28

by Luca DeLucia ’28 on December 11, 2025

How Does It Stack Up?

Every holiday season, the same artists play non-stop on the radio with their classics and covers: Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Michael Bublé, Elvis Presley, and Mariah Carey, to name a few. However, so many other artists have Christmas albums that don’t get the spotlight for one reason or another. 

It was once quite a common thing for artists to make Christmas albums. Most holiday songs are within the public domain, meaning they don’t have to pay any royalties to sing them, and most Christmas albums make a lot of money due to their recurring relevance every year. They are a low creative risk, and they make a big profit: what’s not to love? Bob Dylan, Chicago, and even Weezer are some big-name artists with lesser-known Christmas albums, each incorporating their own style of music into the classics. One day, three years ago, at my local record store, I came across a CD that was from yet another artist whom I never knew made a Christmas album. It was Jimmy Buffett’s Christmas Island (1996). Jimmy Buffett? The tropical rock guy? He has a Christmas album? That seems like an odd pairing, but the CD was only three dollars, so I bought it. Three years later, do I regret my purchase? 

Buffett’s Christmas Island is his 21st studio album, and his first of two Christmas albums. It is composed of 10 songs, one hidden track, and has a runtime of around 43:34. Of the 10 songs, three of them are originals by Buffett: “A Sailor’s Christmas,” “Ho Ho Ho and a Bottle of Rhum,” and “Merry Christmas, Alabama (Never Far From Home).” The other eight songs are all covers rejuvenated to fit Buffett’s easy, relaxed style of tropical rock, from classics such as “Jingle Bells” and “I’ll Be Home For Christmas,” to more contemporary hits like John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s “Happy Xmas (War Is Over).” Of the little reviews I could find, the album has garnered mixed opinions; many people seem to agree that Buffett and Christmas are an odd pairing. 

I never found the original songs on this album to be too amazing, but I’ve grown quite fond of how he reinvents the classics. His version of “Jingle Bells” is quite different from any I have heard, but I find other versions of this classic to be better. His rendition of “Run Rudolph Run” is the most energetic song of the album and is quite a fun ride. For me, the album shines in two songs that were seemingly made for Buffett to cover. The first of these is the title track, “Christmas Island.” It doesn’t even feel like a cover because the song fits so well into what  Buffett does best: “Let’s get away from sleigh bells / Let’s get away from snow / Let’s make or break some Christmas, dear / I know the place to go.” Buffett understands that he’s not the guy to make a Christmas album, but he’s gonna do it anyway. The other track (and my personal favorite song off the album) is his rendition of “Mele Kalikimaka.” It’s another match made in heaven for Buffett, as it’s another song about escaping the traditional white Christmas for some tropical fun. And his version is catchy! It always gets stuck in my head after a listen. 

I don’t think Buffett ever thought his album would become part of the rotation of classic Christmas music, because I don’t think that was ever his intention. Whether he made this album for the low-risk and high-reward that comes with making a Christmas album, or simply because he wanted to remaster some Christmas classics into his own style, Christmas Island is a fun time all around and brings something new to holiday music. Buffett was born on Christmas Day, after all; perhaps this album was inevitable. As I myself will be having a green Christmas in the blistering sun of Florida, I have no doubt that Christmas Island will be playing more often than not to fit my environment. And yes, the album was worth the three dollars I paid for it.