Driving Home for Christmas

"Driving Home for Christmas" is a Christmas song written and composed by British singer-songwriter Chris Rea. The first version was originally released as the B-side to his single "Hello Friend" in 1986. In October 1988, a re-recorded version served as one of two new songs on Rea's first compilation album New Light Through Old Windows. It was issued as the fourth single from the album in December 1988, where it peaked at number 53 on the UK Singles Chart as the lead track of The Christmas EP. Despite its original modest chart placement, the song has made a reappearance on the UK Singles Chart every year since 2007 when it peaked at No. 33, and is featured among the Top 10 Christmas singles. It reached a new peak of number 10 on the UK Singles Chart in 2021. In a UK-wide poll in December 2012, it was voted twelfth on the ITV television special The Nation's Favourite Christmas Song. The song has since been covered by numerous artists, including Engelbert Humperdinck. A 2011 version by Stacey Solomon peaked at number 27 on the UK Singles Chart. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.