The Christmas Shoes (song)


"The Christmas Shoes" is a Christmas-themed song by the Christian vocal group NewSong. The song was released through Benson Records as a bonus track on their 2000 album Sheltering Tree, at the urging of St. Louis and syndicated radio personality DC. DC also co-wrote and co-produced the hit single in the Summer of 2000. and it reached No. 31 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. "The Christmas Shoes" spent one week at No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart and No. 42 on the Hot 100 chart. It was written by NewSong group members Eddie Carswell and Leonard Ahlstrom, and radio personality Isaiah "D.C." Daniel.

Content

The song recounts the events experienced by a narrator completing the last of his gift-shopping on Christmas Eve. He is waiting in the checkout line behind a young boy who wants to buy a pair of shoes for his terminally-ill mother: she will die soon and he wants her to appear beautiful when she meets Jesus. He is short on money and the narrator ends up paying for the shoes, which reminds him of the true meaning of Christmas.

Cover versions and other media

One year after NewSong released the song, country music girl group 3 of Hearts released their own version, which peaked at No. 39 on the country chart.
In 2002, Donna VanLiere produced a novelization of the song which was published in 2002 by St. Martin's Press. The book became a made-for-TV movie released in December 2002.
In 2005 Dutch singer René Froger recorded the song for his Pure Christmas album.
Pop-punk band FM Static released a cover of this song in 2008.

Criticism

The song has appeared on various "worst Christmas song" lists. In 2011, the song was named "The Worst Christmas Song Ever" by Jezebel.com, following a weeks-long survey of commenter votes.
On December 24, 2008, internet critic Nostalgia Chick named this song the most disturbing and inescapable Christmas song. Three years later, she wrote a review of the TV movie. What she found most insulting, as she stated in both videos, is the implication that "God killed that woman because you didn't get the meaning of Christmas."
An animated video of comedian Patton Oswalt's performance at the Lisner Auditorium about the song was posted on YouTube in November 2009. In it, Oswalt refers to the song as a "sick evening prayer".