 "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" was written by Johnny Marks, who had previously penned "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and "A Holly Jolly Christmas".In spite of her mature-sounding voice, Lee recorded the song when she was only 13 years old.In a 2019 interview with "The Tennessean", Lee recalled that she didn't know why Marks wanted her to sing it