Little Saint Nick

"Little Saint Nick"
Single by the Beach Boys
B-side"The Lord's Prayer"
ReleasedDecember 9, 1963
RecordedNovember 6–7, 1963
StudioWestern, Hollywood
Genre
Length2:00
LabelCapitol
Songwriters
ProducerBrian Wilson
The Beach Boys singles chronology
"Be True to Your School"
(1963)		 "Little Saint Nick"
(1963)		 "Fun, Fun, Fun"
(1964)
Music video
"Little Saint Nick" on YouTube
Audio sample

"Little Saint Nick" is a song by American rock band the Beach Boys first released as a single on December 9, 1963. Written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love, the Christmas song applies hot-rod themes to Santa Claus and his sleigh.

The single peaked at number 3 on Billboard magazine's special seasonal weekly Christmas Singles chart. Its B-side was an a cappella version of "The Lord's Prayer". In November 1964, an alternate mix of "Little Saint Nick" appeared as the opening track on The Beach Boys' Christmas Album.

Background

"Little Saint Nick" was initially recorded on October 18 to 20, 1963, at Radio Recorders and Western Studio in Hollywood, but was soon scrapped in favor of a different version on November 6 to 7 in the style of "Little Deuce Coupe". The first version would later use the same backing track for "Drive-In". The idea for the song was partly inspired by record producer Phil Spector's plans to record a Christmas album. Wilson recalled: "I wrote the lyrics to it while I was out on a date and then I rushed home to finish the music." Some of its rhythm and structure derives from the group's "Little Deuce Coupe", also co-written by Wilson and released as a single six months earlier. Love was not originally listed as the co-writer of "Little Saint Nick". His credit was awarded after a 1990s lawsuit.

Variations

"Little Saint Nick" reappeared on The Beach Boys' Christmas Album in 1964, with the stereo pressings of the album containing a new mix that removes the overdubbed sleigh bells, celeste and glockenspiel. This was done so that it would fit better with the sound of the album's first side, which was recorded in a hurry with basic instrumentation. Another version of the song, utilizing the melody and backing track later used for the All Summer Long song "Drive-In", was recorded, but remained unreleased until a 1991 CD reissue.

Personnel

Single version

Additional personnel

Album version

Additional personnel

"Drive-In" version

Credits sourced from John Brode, Will Crerar, Joshilyn Hoisington, and Craig Slowinski.

The Beach Boys

Additional musicians

Charts

Chart (1963) Peak
position
US Christmas Singles (Billboard) 3
Chart (2018–2025) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA) 39
Canada Hot 100 (Billboard)23
France (SNEP) 158
Global 200 (Billboard)34
Ireland (IRMA)47
Latvia (DigiTop100) 84
Netherlands (Single Top 100)98
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) 30
Sweden Heatseeker (Sverigetopplistan) 6
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)54
UK Singles (Official Charts)43
US Billboard Hot 10025
US Holiday 100 (Billboard) 22
US Rolling Stone Top 100 25

Certifications

Certifications for "Little Saint Nick"
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
New Zealand (RMNZ) Platinum 30,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)
Sales since 2004 		Platinum 600,000‡
United States (RIAA) 3× Platinum 3,000,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 Murphy, James B. (2015). Becoming the Beach Boys, 1961-1963. McFarland. p. 317. ISBN 978-0-7864-7365-6.
  2. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920-2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 20. ISBN 0-89820-161-6.
  3. ↑ Badman, Keith. The Beach Boys. The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band: On Stage and in the Studio Backbeat Books, San Francisco, California, 2004. ISBN 0-87930-818-4 p. 45
  4. 1 2 "The All Summer Long Sessions". beachboyssessions.com. Austin Heller. Retrieved August 26, 2026.
  5. ↑ Doe, Andrew G. "GIGS63". Bellagio 10452. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
  6. 1 2 Lambert, Philip (2007). Inside the Music of Brian Wilson: The Songs, Sounds, and Influences of the Beach Boys' Founding Genius. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 116. ISBN 978-1-4411-0748-0.
  7. 1 2 Hickey, Andrew (2018-02-10). The Beach Boys On CD vol 1: The 1960s. Lulu.com. p. 58. ISBN 978-1-4475-4233-9.
  8. ↑ Billboard. https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/60s/1963/Billboard%201963-12-28.pdf pg. 7. Retrieved December 26, 2025.
  9. ↑ "ARIA Top 50 Singles Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. January 2, 2023. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
  10. ↑ "The Beach Boys Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
  11. ↑ "Top Singles (Week 52, 2023)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
  12. ↑ "The Beach Boys Chart History (Global 200)". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  13. ↑ "Official Irish Singles Chart on 27/12/2024 – Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  14. ↑ ""DIGiTop100" gada izskaņas topā svētku dziesmas uzvar teju visus muzikālos smagsvarus" [Christmas songs beat almost all musical heavyweights in DIGiTop100 at the end of the year] (in Latvian). Skaties.lv [lv]. January 3, 2018. Retrieved April 17, 2025.
  15. ↑ "The Beach Boys – Little Saint Nick" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved December 28, 2024.
  16. ↑ "NZ Top 40 Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. December 27, 2024. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  17. ↑ "Veckolista Heatseeker, vecka 52, 2023". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
  18. ↑ "The Beach Boys – Little Saint Nick". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved December 29, 2024.
  19. ↑ "Official Singles Chart on 29/12/2023 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
  20. ↑ "The Beach Boys Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  21. ↑ "Holiday 100 (Week of December 31, 2022)". Billboard. December 31, 2022. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  22. ↑ "Top 100 Songs". Rolling Stone. December 24, 2019. Archived from the original on December 31, 2019. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
  23. ↑ "New Zealand single certifications – The Beach Boys – Little Saint Nick". Radioscope. Retrieved January 25, 2026. Type Little Saint Nick in the "Search:" field and press Enter.
  24. ↑ "British single certifications – Beach Boys – Little Saint Nick". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved December 21, 2025. Select singles in the Formats field. Type Little Saint Nick Beach Boys in the "Search:" field.
  25. ↑ "American single certifications – The Beach Boys – Little Saint Nick". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved May 15, 2026.