Smokey Robinson and the Miracles was the performing and recording name from… Read Full Bio ↴Smokey Robinson and the Miracles was the performing and recording name from 1965 to 1972 of renowned American R&B/soul group The Miracles. From Detroit, Michigan, the band Miracles remain notable as the first successful group act for Berry Gordy's Motown Records. Over their career across the 1960s, 70s and 80s, the Miracles were one of Motown's signature acts with over forty top 40 R&B hits. Over the same time period, their original lead singer and founding member Smokey Robinson became one of the most successful songwriters and record producers of all time.

The hit songs "Do It Baby" and Love Machine (written by Billy Griffin & Pete Moore) were performed by Billy Griffin as the lead singer after the departure of original founder member Smokey Robinson.
http://myspace.com/billygriffinthemiracles

Santa Claus Is Comin
Smokey Robinson and The Miracles Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I just came back from a lovely trip along the Milky Way
Stopped off at the North Pole to spend a holiday
I called on dear old Santa Claus
To see what I could see
He took me to his workshop
And told his plans to me, so

[Chorus]

You better watch out, you better not cry
Better not pout, I'm telling you why
Santa Claus is comin' to town
He's making a list and checking it twice
Gonna find out who's naughty and nice
Santa Claus is comin' to town
He sees you when you're sleepin'
He knows when you're a wake
He knows if you've been bad or good
So be good for goodness sake
Oh! You better watch out, you better not cry
Better not pout, I'm telling you why
Santa Claus is comin' to town

With little tin horns and little toy drums
Rooty toot toots and rummy tum tums
Santa Claus is comin' to town
And curly head dolls that toddle and coo
Elephants, boats, and kiddie cars too
Santa Claus is comin' to town
Then kids in Girl and Boy land will have a jubilee
They're gonna build a Toyland all around the Christmas tree
So! You better watch out, you better not cry
Better not pout, I'm telling you why
Santa Claus is comin' to town

Now Santa is a busy man, He has no time to play
He's got millions of stockings to fill on Christmas day
You'd better write your letter now
And mail it right away
Because he's getting ready
His reindeer's and his sleigh. So

[Chorus]

With little tin horns and little toy drums
Rooty toot toots and rummy tum tums
Santa Claus is comin' to town
And curly head dolls that toddle and coo
Elephants, boats, and kiddie cars too
Santa Claus is comin' to town
Then kids in Girl and Boy land will have a jubilee
They're gonna build a Toyland all around the Christmas tree
So! You better watch out, you better not cry

Better not pout, I'm telling you why
Santa Claus is comin' to town

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" by Smokey Robinson and The Miracles tell the story of a person who takes a trip through the Milky Way and makes a stop at the North Pole to visit Santa Claus himself. Santa takes the person on a tour of his workshop and tells them about his plans for Christmas. The chorus of the song warns listeners to "watch out," "not cry," and "not pout" because Santa Claus is coming to town and he's making a list, checking it twice, and will know if they've been naughty or nice. The song ends with a declaration that kids all over Girl and Boy land will have a jubilee and build a Toyland around their Christmas tree in anticipation of Santa's arrival.

The lyrics to "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" are a fun way to celebrate the Christmas season with the story of Santa Claus and the excitement that his arrival brings. The song warns children to be good and not misbehave because Santa is watching and will know if they've been naughty or nice. Additionally, the song talks about the joy that Santa brings to children as they build a Toyland around their Christmas tree and receive their presents on Christmas Day.

Line by Line Meaning

I just came back from a lovely trip along the Milky Way
After traveling through space, I visited the North Pole for a vacation

Stopped off at the North Pole to spend a holiday
I made a quick stop at the North Pole to take a break

I called on dear old Santa Claus
I visited Santa Claus, who I have known for a long time and is a good friend of mine

To see what I could see
To find out what Santa Claus was up to

He took me to his workshop
Santa Claus showed me his workshop

And told his plans to me, so
He shared his upcoming plans with me

You better watch out, you better not cry
Be careful and don't cry

Better not pout, I'm telling you why
Don't be grumpy, and I'll tell you why

Santa Claus is comin' to town
Santa Claus will be visiting soon

He's making a list and checking it twice
Santa Claus is creating a list and reviewing it carefully

Gonna find out who's naughty and nice
He will figure out who has been good and who has been bad

Santa Claus is comin' to town
Santa Claus will be visiting soon

He sees you when you're sleepin'
He knows when you're asleep

He knows when you're a wake
He knows when you're awake

He knows if you've been bad or good
He knows if you have been naughty or nice

So be good for goodness sake
Therefore, be good just for the sake of goodness

Oh! You better watch out, you better not cry
Oh! Be careful and don't cry

Better not pout, I'm telling you why
Don't be grumpy, and I'll tell you why

Santa Claus is comin' to town
Santa Claus will be visiting soon

With little tin horns and little toy drums
With small toys such as tin horns and toy drums

Rooty toot toots and rummy tum tums
With instruments that make noises like 'rooty toot toots' and 'rummy tum tums'

And curly head dolls that toddle and coo
With dolls that have curly hair and move around and make sweet sounds

Elephants, boats, and kiddie cars too
With toys such as elephants, boats, and toy cars for children

Then kids in Girl and Boy land will have a jubilee
Children and kids will be very happy

They're gonna build a Toyland all around the Christmas tree
They will build a Toyland around the Christmas tree

So! You better watch out, you better not cry
So! Be careful and don't cry

Better not pout, I'm telling you why
Don't be grumpy, and I'll tell you why

Santa Claus is comin' to town
Santa Claus will be visiting soon

Now Santa is a busy man, He has no time to play
Santa Claus is very busy and doesn't have time to play

He's got millions of stockings to fill on Christmas day
Santa Claus must fill millions of stockings on Christmas Day

You'd better write your letter now
You should write your letter to Santa Claus right away

And mail it right away
And send it right away

Because he's getting ready
Because Santa Claus is preparing

His reindeer's and his sleigh. So
His reindeer and sleigh are also being prepared, so