Elton John’s classic holiday tune “Step into Christmas” turns 50 this year: It was released on November 23, 1973. To celebrate the milestone, a new digital seven-track EP called Step into Christmas has just hit streaming services.
In addition to the 2017 remastered version of “Step into Christmas,” the EP also includes an alternate version of the song Elton sang on The Gilbert O’Sullivan Show in 1973, as well as the song’s original B-side, “Ho! Ho! Ho! (Who’d Be a Turkey at Christmas).”
Other holiday songs on the collection include Elton’s duet with Joss Stone, “Calling It Christmas,” from his 2005 Starbucks compilation album, Elton John’s Christmas Party, and a live version of “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer,” recorded live on December 22, 1973, at London’s Hammersmith Odeon.
The final two tracks are songs that aren’t really about Christmas: “All Quiet on the Western Front,” from Elton’s 1982 album, Jump Up!, and “Cold As Christmas (In the Middle of the Year),” from 1983’s Too Low for Zero.
Elton’s online store also has a selection of holiday merch, including a “Step into Christmas” Christmas sweater and a variety of Christmas ornaments — plus lots of other merch for that Elton fan in your life.
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