The Reason why Bowie didn’t want to perform ‘Little Drummer Boy with Bing Crosby

Each time I hear the joy of Christmas, Bing Crosby always comes to my kind, many say he’s synonymous with it.

His melodious voice seems never to get old, no matter when and how many times it’s played, it will always warm our hearts.

One month before he passed away in 1977 he sang Peace on Earth/Little Drummer boy alongside David Bowie.

He secured his spot as the music legend before passing away and it has remained in the hearts of people to date.

Firstly, Bowie never wanted to perform the song with Bing for one reason.

Christmas for people may different things, some it’s a time they get to meet their loved ones, for me it’s a time of gift exchange and showing love to people.

There are countless songs played during Christmas, but that of Bing Crosby will always be the one with the indelible mark.

His performance of white Christmas was a hit and became the best-selling Christmas song of all time, selling over 50 million copies.

Throughout his lifetime, he did not have fewer than 42 Christmas television specials which made him become synonymous with Christmas. His final one was in 1977.

Looking at the footage of Bing and Bowie as they stood next to each other in the Christmas Special television studio, it all looks so wonderful and the calmness that emitted from their poses was close to none.

In 2014, speaking with PBS, the writers of Bing Crosby’s Merrie Olde Christmas explained that David Bowie refused to sing the original song, The Little Drummer Boy with Crosby.

“He said, ‘I won’t sing that song. I hate that song. I’m doing this show because my mother loves Bing Crosby,’” Larry Grossman and Buz Kohan said, as reported by CBC.

“We didn’t know quite what to do,” Fraser explained, according to UltimateClassicRock.com.

The duo never got along on their first meeting and when Bowie’s wife showed up at the studio, bing wasn’t impressed.

“The doors opened, and David walked in with his wife,” Bing’s daughter, Mary Crosby, recalled. “They were both wearing full-length mink coats, they have matching full makeup, and their hair was bright red. We were thinking, ‘Oh my god.’”

“It almost didn’t happen,” Bing’s son, Nathaniel Crosby, added.

“I think the producers told him to take the lipstick off and take the earring out. It was just incredible to see the contrast.”

Sadly, Crosby passed away before the song was aired. He suffered a major heart attack and the world mourned their loss.