It’s a simple thought. Twenty, thirty, forty … seventy years from now, will anyone be able to name any Mariah Carey song other than “All I Want for Christmas is You”?

Look at this list of best-selling artists from yesteryear, and the one song you probably know them by:

Burl Ives – Holly Jolly Christmas (1964)

Nat King Cole – The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting) (1947)

Perry Como – Ave Maria

Gene Autry – Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1949)

Brenda Lee – Rocking Around the Christmas Tree (1958)

Andy Williams – The Most Wonderful Time of the Year (1963)

But Mariah might not be alone in joining this list. I think Faith Hill might only leave “Where Are You Christmas?” as her legacy and I wonder if any Wham song will outlive “Last Christmas”.

Isn’t it better to be known for something than nothing at all? Perhaps. But Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra also released Christmas albums. Their releases never became holiday standards, and we remember them for other works.

None of this is meant as a critique of the artists. I’m just noting how history has judged certain artists’ legacies and offering a few who may end with the same fate.