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November 22, 2025 17 mins
Rock 'n' Roll Icon Freddy "Boom Boom" Cannon Unwraps New Holiday Hit: "Red Coat Santa"Just in time for the holiday season, rock 'n' roll icon Freddy "Boom Boom" Cannon is back with a brand-new Christmas single, "Red Coat Santa." Written and recorded by Cannon himself, the festive track blends his signature high-energy style with the warmth and nostalgia of the holidays."Red Coat Santa" is generating buzz among fans of classic rock and holiday music alike. The song is available now on all major streaming platforms.Cannon, best known for his 1962 smash hit "Palisades Park" and his electrifying performances on American Bandstand, brings his unmistakable voice and timeless rock 'n' roll flair to this original holiday tune. With sleigh bells, saxophones, and a toe-tapping beat, "Red Coat Santa" is poised to become a seasonal favorite."I've always loved Christmas music, and I wanted to create something that felt both classic and new," said Cannon. "Red Coat Santa" is my way of bringing a little rock 'n' roll joy to the season. I hope it makes people smile, dance, and remember what the holidays are all about-fun, family, and music.""When I wrote this tune, I thought no one had really ever sung about Santa's famous outfit. And I was inspired by my angel, my wife, Jeannette, who passed away earlier this year" said Cannon.This release marks Cannon's return to the holiday music scene following his 2002 album Have a Boom Boom Christmas, which featured both classic covers and original songs. Now, over two decades later, "Red Coat Santa" proves that Freddy Cannon's rock 'n' roll spirit is as vibrant as ever.Cannon holds the record for the artist with the most appearances on "American Bandstand" (110 times).

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Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
In radio, they always tell us one thought per break.
So why would I put an NFL star with a
YA author or a movie star with a doctor who
says I've cured cancer. Ero dot net, A R R
O E dot net, seventeen different podcasts and subjects to
enhance your life. Thank you so much for being a
part of mine. Man, how are you doing?

Speaker 2 (00:23):
I'm hanging in there. I'm writing songs that I'm hanging
in there. That's all I can tell you.

Speaker 1 (00:29):
See, I love that idea that you're writing music because
so many times people go, why don't you just give
it up? No, you can't give it up. And my
friend Freddie Boom Boom Cannon is proving that you can't
just let it go to sleep at night. It's gonna
stay awake and keep you awake.

Speaker 2 (00:42):
Yeah. I'm not gonna give it up. I'm gonna keep
on doing. I just wrote two more songs. That's to
keep writing and writing and writing. You know, I got
my voice she passed away. She's my angel. She's giving
me the inspiration to keep writing. And that's what I'm doing.

Speaker 1 (00:59):
So I want to teach sure, that says Freddie Boom Boom.
I can I will I did. Now let's grow some more.

Speaker 2 (01:07):
Yeah, but what I you know what you talked about,
it's about somebody writing songs and uh, people give it up.
You know, there are people out there. What I'm thinking
is they all want to don't know, they all want
to do albums, you know, cut an album you know,

(01:30):
and hopefully they'll get bigg or whatever you know. But
for some reason they don't understand. You better be a
hit in there. One song, because like yourself, you can
only play one song at a time. You can't play

(01:51):
twelve songs up an album during the day. They're gonna
play one and that one that will be a hit.
So that's what I write. I write big ole songs
just enough to be a hit. That's the way I
want to write. I'm not writing an album. I'm writing
a song that can that will make people listen, go

(02:13):
and buy it and enjoy it and have fun with it.

Speaker 1 (02:16):
Well, you've done exactly that with Red Coach Santa. Because
this song is fresh, It's perfect for every radio format.
I'm telling you, I can't wait to hear it on
classic rock stations. Who sit there and say they don't
write Christmas music for classic rock I'm thinking Red Coach
Santa is gonna do it, dude, Okay.

Speaker 2 (02:34):
I appreciate that. That's what I'm hoping for. I think
I think we got a hit. And at my age,
being a little older, you know what a what a thrill,
and what a treat this is for me. I mean,
for people like yourself to go on this song and
love it and love it and playing it. I thank

(02:54):
you so very much, I really do.

Speaker 1 (02:56):
Let's talk about that thing you just brought up, age,
because I mean, that's the one thing I do not
believe in when it comes to creativity, because I still
believe I'm seventeen years old, and I don't believe that
you are where you are. I still believe that you're
either that or you're a little bit younger than me.

Speaker 2 (03:12):
No, I'm I'm probably older than you, but no, but
I think you've got to think young like this with
a music, Yes, yeah, rock and roll music. We'll just
keep you young. And as long as you like I'm
doing writing it, and you're playing it, and you're around it,
your feeling the same way. You've got the same feeling

(03:32):
as I do.

Speaker 1 (03:34):
This is the type of song and we're talking about
Redcoat Santa that I am hoping that Vince Vaughan or
Seth Rogan get their hands on and turn it into
a movie or turn it into some sort of animation piece,
because this song right here, really I've never heard a
song about Santa suit before, and now we've got this one.

Speaker 2 (03:53):
Well, yeah, but I wrote this song here exactly right.
There was never a song written about anything he wore
booster his hat, you know, and and now he's got
to talk about his coat. So Redcoat Santa is it
is very very personal to me. Uh, I know that

(04:16):
everybody has talked to So let me tell you everybody
I've ever talked to about this song that in the
last two or three weeks I was singing it. They
just singing it. Yeah, they're crazy about it, you know,
just like you just said. And you know, it makes
me feel like I did something special, I wrote something

(04:37):
special and us That's all I can say. Thank God
that he's watching me.

Speaker 1 (04:44):
Believe me, you have always been so grateful your entire
path and listeners can go check out your videos and
interviews and things with other podcasters and radio show hosts.
You have been so amazingly grateful and that has always
inspired me, Freddy to plant it in my own life.

Speaker 2 (05:04):
Well, you know what, I look at it this way,
To be honest with you, if I didn't have people
like yourself and other radio people that wouldn't make it.
They didn't have to. You don't have to play me.
They didn't have to play my song. There's other singers
they could have been playing, but they jumped on Freddy

(05:24):
Boom boom cannon and they started playing his songs. How
how can I not thank them? They didn't have to.
Like I said, they didn't have to play me. They
had plenty of other choices, but they chose me. You know,
my God, that's a wonderful thing for me to say
thank you. And I don't think thank you is enough.

(05:47):
I could I could go beyond. If I could see
them all in one big room, which they could kill.
I mean, I would say, oh, shake their hands. I
would shake their hands and everything. So that's all I'm saying.

Speaker 1 (05:59):
Are you finding yourself out there on the road to
to meet and greet the fans as well? Because I
would love to see you on a Christmas tour sometimes, sir, Well.

Speaker 2 (06:08):
I haven't done anything live, any anythings in the last
year or so I'm getting people get interested in what
they want to book me for shows and stuff, but
I haven't said yes or anything yet. Uh, you know,
I don't. I don't feel like I have a c OPD.
So it's hard for me.

Speaker 3 (06:29):
To breathe sometimes, and I don't want to come and
do a show and then tell the people short, you know,
maybe you only do three or four songs and then
get off this.

Speaker 2 (06:41):
I don't want to do that. So I'm trying to
figure out what's the best way to do something. And
if I do, I hope I can come by where
you are and do a show and maybe you can
see me. But we'll see what happens. Right now, it's
it's just in a talking stage.

Speaker 1 (06:59):
One of the things that you're proving with Red Coat
Santa is that Christmas is not just one day, it's
every day. And then to read that Christmas is very
special to you. See, I celebrated every day, so therefore
this song will become a part of my everyday process.
How is it that that you're able to take that feeling,
that warmth, that emotion of Christmas and put it into

(07:19):
a song called Red Coat Santa and still sit there
and go there's more in me, because you said it
in the very beginning. You just wrote two more songs.

Speaker 2 (07:30):
I just keep on going. I don't know. I don't
know what it is that's coming out of me, but
I'm doing it, and I just want a really another
not a Christmas song, but a regular rock, rock and
roll song. I think it's really gonna be good. So
I don't know what it is. I can't tell you
that the Yeah, I can't give you the answer that

(07:53):
inspires me so much. Like I said, maybe my wife
will pass away, maybe she's doing I don't know what's
going on. I really don't have an answer for you.

Speaker 1 (08:04):
Please do not move. There's more with Freddie Boom Boom
Cannon coming up next the name of his new Christmas song,
Red Coat Santa. We are back with rock and roll
legend Freddie boom Boom Cannon. Well, Freddie, I'm a firm
believer that you know there are transitions in life, but
they never leave you. I always call it the Yoda
fact because I believe that my mother, my sister, my

(08:24):
father and brother are with me stronger today than what
they were when they were here on the planet, and
creativity levels are through the roof. I believe they're using
us to continue being stronger on this planet.

Speaker 2 (08:39):
Well, I think you put it in a line, very
very nice words, a very good world, and I think
that probably relates to me too. I think I feel
the way you do. So uh, that's that's probably what
I think you're right about that.

Speaker 1 (08:54):
Well, because we need a song like Red Coat Santa
to take us away from the realms of the real world.
I need a song that I can sing with. I
need to crank it up so loud that I can't
hear myself singing out of tune. So therefore I'm just
as brilliant as you are.

Speaker 2 (09:09):
But you know what, if you was singing it, I
heard you singing it, you wouldn't sing it out of
tune because it's easy for you to. It's easy to
remember this song. The song is so so easy. So yeah,
it's so catchy you'd save it right on right along
with me. So I'm not worried about that. But I
just want to say, you know, it's on YouTube, so

(09:31):
because people want to want to hear it off of YouTube,
they can, and they can get it on the streaming
on Spotify and Apple Music.

Speaker 1 (09:41):
So what is that like for you to go from well,
the days of w LS in Chicago, w NBC and
all the big stations across the nation to now you're
talking about YouTube. I mean, you are the full experience
of the rock and roll journey.

Speaker 2 (09:58):
Yeah, but I don't want I wish I didn't have
to talk about Spotify and then they're streaming and everything.
Because the days of the record business when you had
a forty five yeah you know, or an EP uh
you know, or an album, those are wonderful, exciting days.
They extend the record out. They shook the record out.

(10:19):
I mean, you know one hundreds of thousands of the
records that was That was excitement. Today is excitement, but
it's a different kind of excitement, you know what I mean,
it's got you can't feel it. It has to be.
You have to go looking forar on your computer and
see how many hits you got.

Speaker 1 (10:40):
That's so true, so addictive, so addictive. I don't know
if you know this Boom boom, but the gentleman that's
serving as your producer with iHeart today that that man
right there, Bill, he's got a Christmas station. Man, I'm
telling you what that dude is extending his creativity beyond
beyond radio and streaming and things. He's making it available
for every everybody.

Speaker 3 (11:01):
And you know what, I'm going to play boom Boom
song on our station this year without a doubt.

Speaker 1 (11:06):
See boom boom Yeah. I mean, I mean you You
are creating music that is reaching beyond what we think
is music sharing. And because people that are building, it's
no long's it's not any different than a home studio.
We've got these these studios when it comes to extending
radio and you're part of that journey as well.

Speaker 2 (11:28):
Well, thank you and it makes me feel good. And
I bet when you play a red Coat Stan on
Josh speakers in the studio, I bet this sounds great
on those speakers.

Speaker 3 (11:39):
I bet right.

Speaker 2 (11:40):
Yeah yeah.

Speaker 1 (11:41):
Have you ever been in a radio station studio to
hear our speakers and things? Because we love it loud
and we love that boom boom Yeah.

Speaker 2 (11:49):
I would love to be there to hear and would
you play it? It's because you can hear everything you
know on every instrument and coming through on those speakers.
I'm sure that the way that band in the studio
place made the song, you know. For me, I would
love to hear it that way. But unfortunately I don't

(12:09):
have speakers like that. Yeah, we do.

Speaker 1 (12:13):
It's inside our imaginations. There's no set of speakers better
than that one that's inside our head. All right, So
let's talk about the production of the song. When you
talk about where you can hear all of the instrumentations
that are taking place, I want to know about that
because we live in this compressed era where everything is
so slammed together that we're not hearing the high ends

(12:36):
or we're not hearing those bass notes. How are you
able to sit with your engineers and get them to
divide up that sound to where we get a total experience.

Speaker 2 (12:45):
Well, when you have a good engineer like this guy,
Jef pete Is, that's this studio in Pasadena. Well, you
have a man like that, he knows just what to get.
I mean, he's recorded everybody that he recorded the beach poison. Hey,
I can go on and on with a bunch of people,
but he knows when he saw, and he he when

(13:05):
he heard this song being played back and they were
rehearsing it with me in the studio. For some reason,
he mustn't in his mind, he must have knew, Hey,
I'm gonna make this thing rock. He said, I'm gonna
make this thing and this is what I'm thinking. He's thinking, Hey,
I'm gonna make this thing rock. I'm gonna give it,

(13:26):
give it all I can and uh. And when he
did it, he made he made the band down so great.
You know, you know, the track is always it's just
as much important as the songs. The track is as
hot and really doing well, you're gonna have a good

(13:46):
chance of having a hit if if the if the
song is good and the melody is good, then you
you gotta you're gonna have a hit. And that's exactly
what he did. He get that track really you know, rocket,
which is good.

Speaker 1 (14:00):
But you know the official rules boom boom. When it
comes to music, you've got to you've got to put
it on a CD and go listen to it in
the car, or you've got to take a walk and
listen to it that way as well, because you're putting
yourself in the position of where your listeners are going
to be.

Speaker 2 (14:13):
That's right, you know all that, that's true. Everything you're
saying is very true. There's no question about it. You
gotta you walk away, go in your car with us
with a CD, uh, you know, and and listen to it.
And sometimes you got to listen to it soft so
you can hear how would be on a radio if

(14:35):
you weren't turning it up. So if it all comes
through a little little softer. But I don't like it
that way. I have to. I have to crank it
when I when I, when I say that's song, I
got to crank it up, just like you.

Speaker 1 (14:48):
Oh my god, that's so funny. You just brought up
a program director memory for me in the way that
program directors used to tell me, turn it down, turn
it down, turn it down to almost a whisper, because
that's how listeners are listening. I don't want to believe that.
I want to believe that when when your song Redcoat
Santa is on, it is blaring and somebody's about ready
to call the cops because you're breaking the noise.

Speaker 2 (15:07):
Rules, that's right, and they're dancing to it, you know,
they they hear that song, it's not dancing. That's the
way that you're right, that's the way it should be played,
to not be played softly. You know, it's not a
soft song. It's a rock. It's a rock and roller.
You know, and I'm very proud of it. I'm proud

(15:28):
to say it that way because that's what it is
that I know. You know, that's what it is that
you that's you're into that kind of stuff. You're into
that music like I am, and you're on radio and
i'm and I'm a writer and a singer and a writer.
So and we think the same way. You know. That's it. Wow.

Speaker 1 (15:49):
So can you talk about those other two songs that
you've panned out or are we gonna have to reschedule
a conversation because I never want to stop promoting you, sir, We're.

Speaker 2 (15:56):
Gonna have to reschedule. I gotta go to the studio.
I won't cut this this stuff and do anything until
probably April of next year. Wow, I'll wait a little while.
I don't want to, you know, jump into a studio
in the meantime, I'm still writing other stuff. But I'd
rather just wait until. Yep, you know, I can. I

(16:18):
can give you one title of one of the songs
that I and I'll give you the title. Is that
all right?

Speaker 1 (16:23):
That's cool. I'd love to hear it, man.

Speaker 2 (16:26):
That's the title is called one of the titles of
song I just wrote his call. All she wants to
do is dance.

Speaker 1 (16:33):
Nice because she does. I'm a DJ man. I understand
that all she wants to do is dance. She wants
to be on that floor. Every bride, every mother in law,
every mother, they all want to be out there on
that floor dance. And she does want to dance.

Speaker 2 (16:46):
Yeah, that's it, And I think that's going to be
a good one. But anyway, then I gets some other ones.
But I don't want to do anything till later, like
I said, But I hope we talk again and we
can you know, and then be be playing a new
song again. Hopefully that'll work, you know, we'll see. Wow.

Speaker 1 (17:05):
Well, you've got to come back to this show anytime
in the future. The door is always going to be open,
mister Freddie Boom boom Cannon.

Speaker 2 (17:12):
Thank you, my friend. Happy Thanksgiving and a merry Christmas
to you and all of the people at all of
you are listeners.

Speaker 1 (17:18):
Thank you so much, sir. Be brilliant today.
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