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Here Are The Best Christmas Songs And Holiday Hits Of 2018

John Legend, Gwen Stefani, William Shatner, RuPaul and more debut new tunes for the holidays.

Every Christmas brings with it a new batch of holiday songs, from fresh takes on old favorites to originals hoping to join the pantheon of perennials.

This year, John Legend released his first Christmas album with his spin on such classics as “What Christmas Means To Me” (with Stevie Wonder) and “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” (featuring Esperanza Spalding) as well as the new tune “Bring Me Love”:

Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Eric Clapton also released the first Christmas album of his five-and-a-half-decade career. “Happy Xmas” lends his trademark voice and guitar to some classics, including a rendition of “White Christmas.”

He’s also got an original blues tune for the holiday, “For Love On Christmas Day.”

Iconic actor William Shatner has a new album of Christmas tunes out. “Shatner Claus” features multiple collaborations, including a “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer” with ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons.

But it also features an unexpectedly stirring rendition of “Silent Night” with Iggy Pop:

Gwen Stefani re-released last year’s Christmas album, “You Make It Feel Like Christmas,” with a few bonus tracks including the original tune “Cheer for the Elves” and her take on “Feliz Navidad”:

L.A.-based punk/pop duo The Dollyrots have released a few Christmas covers over the years, including a rocking “All I Want For Christmas Is You” in 2016.

This year, they’ve dropped a foot-stomping medley of holiday classics featuring a moshing Frosty the Snowman:

Want some funk in your Christmas? Of course you do. Aloe Blacc delivers the goods with “Funky Ass Christmas.”

Some tunes have multiple remakes to choose from.

Tyler the Creator cooked up a new take on “You’re A Mean One, Mr. Grinch” for the new “Grinch” film:

Violinist Lindsey Stirling also tackled the Grinch, with vocals by Sabrina Carpenter:

Indie singer-songwriter Phoebe Bridgers released a haunting version of McCarthy Trenching’s “Christmas Song,” with additional vocals by Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Jackson Browne:

RuPaul’s latest Christmas album, “Christmas Party,” is mostly remixed versions of older material, but does contain a couple of new tracks including “Hey Sis, It’s Christmas” (featuring Markaholic):

Jessie J also dropped a Christmas album this year.

“This Christmas Day” has the British pop star taking on such classics as “Let It Snow” as well as collaborations with Boyz II Men on “Winter Wonderland” and Babyface on “The Christmas Song.”

She’s also released an animated video for “Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town”:

Texas trio Khruangbin put their own beat on “Christmas Time Is Here” from “A Charlie Brown Christmas”:

And if you’ve overdosed on holiday cheer, there’s always “Christmas Isn’t Real,” the trippy new song and video from Bill Wurtz:

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.