Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller wrote this song for Elvis in 1957 just after they finished working with him on songs for his film Jailhouse Rock. Elvis liked having the duo in the studio, as he thought they were his "lucky charms." He was working on his first Christmas album when a call came in that they desperately needed one more song to complete it. Leiber and Stoller could write very quickly, so they found a utility closet, put the song together in a very short time, Stoller says it was eight minutes, and presented it to Elvis' manager, "Colonel" Tom Parker.
