Sir Elton John enters Christmas race with remix of classic song with huge popstar

Sir Elton John is releasing a new version of his festive hit single Step Into Christmas (Picture: AP) Sir Elton John is officially Stepping Into Christmas with a reimagined version of his hit holiday classic. The singer, 79, has teamed up with Irish hitmaker CMAT for a lively rock ‘n’ roll version of his single Step Into Christmas — 53 years after its release. The 1973 single previously peaked at number seven on the UK singles chart in 2025, and will now enter the race for Christmas number one as this year’s Amazon Music Original Christmas song. Last year’s single, XMAS by Australian singer Kylie Minogue, became the 2025 UK Christmas number one single. Sir Elton said: ‘I’ve loved CMAT since I first heard her and saw her videos years ago. ‘She has this incredible personality and a wicked sense of humour.’ The singer has teamed up with Irish star CMAT for a new version of his festive hit single (Picture: Ben Gibson/Amazon Music/Press Association) Step Into Christmas was originally released in November 1973 EGOT-winning Sir Elton added: ‘You can tell she has rock and roll and country, and Americana, at the heart of what she does – we’re kindred spirits in so many ways, and that’s why I was so thrilled with the idea of us collaborating on Step Into Christmas. ‘She’s done an amazing job.’ CMAT, real name is Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson, said: ‘When I listen to the music of Elton John, I am seven years old in the back of my mam’s car. ‘It doesn’t matter how old or famous I become – whenever I listen to Elton John I will always be seven years old in the back of my mam’s car.’ She added: ‘Reconciling this feeling with the reality of getting to work with the man in question has been confusing to say the least, but the greatest joy of my life. ‘Christmas is my absolute favourite thing in the world, second maybe only to Elton John. I would like to invite the whole world to step into Christmas with us and make your yuletide dreams come true.’ UK Christmas number ones through the years 2000 – Bob the Builder – Can We Fix It? 2001 – Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman – Somethin’ Stupid 2002 – Girls Aloud – Sound of the Underground 2003 – Michael Andrews and Gary Jules – Mad World 2004 – Band Aid 20 – Do They Know It’s Christmas? 2005 – Shayne Ward – That’s My Goal 2006 – Leona Lewis – A Moment Like This 2007 – Leon Jackson – When You Believe 2008 – Alexandra Burke – Hallelujah 2009 – Rage Against the Machine – Killing in the Name 2010 – Matt Cardle – When We Collide 2011 – Military Wives ft. Gareth Gates – Wherever You Are 2012 – The Justice Collective – He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother 2013 – Sam Bailey – Skyscraper 2014 – Ben Haenow – Something I Need 2015 – Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Choir – A Bridge over You 2016 – Clean Bandit ft. Sean Paul and Anne-Marie – Rockabye 2017– Ed Sheeran – Perfect 2018, 2019, 2020 – LadBaby – We Built This City, I Love Sausage Rolls, Don’t Stop Me Eatin 2021 – LadBaby ft. Ed Sheeran and Elton John – Sausage Rolls for Everyone 2022 – LadBaby – Food Aid 2023, 2024 – Wham! – Last Christmas 2025 – Kylie Minogue – XMAS CMAT said working with Sir Elton is ‘the greatest joy of my life’ (Picture: Lorne Thomson/Redferns) CMAT, 30, won the best album gong at this year’s Ivor Novello Awards for her third LP Euro-Country, and is best known for songs such as Take A Sexy Picture Of Me, When A Good Man Cries and Running/Planning. In 2009, Step Into Christmas, which was written by Sir Elton and lyricist Bernie Taupin, was listed as the ninth-most-played Christmas song of the 2000s in the UK. In 2024, the music video for the song was remade as a behind-the-scenes reimagining starring model Cara Delevingne as Sir Elton, wearing an outfit identical to the one worn by him in the original video. The duo said they had wanted to work together and thought of the idea while at Glastonbury Festival in 2024. Step Into Christmas will be available to stream exclusively on Amazon Music from today. Arrow MORE: Forget The Muppets, Wallace and Gromit have the best Christmas advert this year Arrow MORE: All the biggest 2026 Christmas adverts so far including John Lewis and Aldi’s Kevin the Carrot Arrow MORE: Asda goes unconventional for its Christmas advert with pyro-crackers and dance music Switched On Get plugged into the week’s must-watch shows, unmissable moments, and expert reviews with Metro TV Editor Sabrina Barr.