Merry 'Chris'mas Trivia Quiz

Answer: Chris Montez

'The More I See You' is a standard song in the repertoire of many singers, including Andy Williams, Big Crosby and Marvin Gaye. The Chris Montez version was released as a single in 1966, reaching a high of number three on the UK Singles Chart and number sixteen on the US Billboard Hot 100. Chris's biggest chart success came in 1962 with the song 'Let's Dance'.

As this shared a title with a different song by Chris Rea, who also features in this quiz, I decided it was fairer to avoid this.

Answer: Christopher Cross

The song was written by Christopher Cross himself and was released as a single in 1980. He followed it up with 'Sailing' (a different song from the one of the same name by Rod Stewart) which was an even bigger success. Cross also sang the theme song to the film 'Arthur' in 1981, released under the title of 'Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)'.

Answer: New Christy Minstrels

I was surprised to find that the music for this song was written by Burt Bacharach, with the lyrics provided by Bob Hilliard, and even more taken aback to discover that the first release, in 1961, was sung by Dick Van Dyke. The New Christy Minstrels' version did rather better, in 1962, with Barry McGuire on vocals.

The group was the starting point for several singers who went on to solo success, with Kenny Rogers and Kim Carnes also having been members.

Answer: Crispian St. Peters

Crispian's real name was Robin Smith, which doesn't sound nearly as exotic. He had two major hits, with 'You Were on My Mind' reaching number two on the UK Singles Chart in 1966. 'The Pied Piper' was his follow up and gave him another top ten UK hit, as well as going to number four on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Answer: Chrissie Hynde

Written by Sonny Bono, the song was originally a 1965 hit for then husband and wife duo Sonny and Cher. Chrissie Hynde teamed up with British band UB40 for the 1985 version, which reached number one on the UK Single Chart and managed to hit the US Billboard Hot 100 at number twenty-eight. Chrissie is best known for singing with The Pretenders, of course, with hit songs including 'Brass in Pocket', 'Don't Get Me Wrong' and 'I'll Stand By You' among them.

Answer: Chris Isaak

Isaak's career began in 1985 and he is still working in the 2010s. 'Wicked Game' is his biggest chart hit. Its success was helped by David Lynch featuring it in the 1990 film 'Wild at Heart', which starred Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern. In addition to his music career, Chris has appeared in several films including 'Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me' in 1992, also directed by Lynch.

Answer: Chris Rea

With his instantly recognisable raspy voice, Chris Rea has been around since the 1970s. His first chart success came with 'Fool (If You Think it's Over)' in 1978, with other hits including 'Let's Dance' in 1987 and 'Driving Home for Christmas' in 1988. 'The Road to Hell' came out in 1989 and got to number ten on the UK Singles Chart.

Answer: Lou Christie

Dating from 1965, 'Lightnin' Strikes' was Christie's second top ten US hit, reaching the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100. It didn't quite make the UK top ten, stalling at number eleven. Lou's final major chart success came in 1969 with 'I'm Gonna Make You Mine', which was a bigger hit in the UK than in his home country of America.

Answer: Chris de Burgh

Born in Ireland as Christopher Davidson, Chris de Burgh first came to notice with 'A Spaceman Came Travelling' in 1975, which is a regular on the Christmas playlists. 'Don't Pay the Ferryman' was another success for him in 1982 before he hit the jackpot in 1986 with 'The Lady in Red', a huge worldwide hit for him.

Inspired by his wife, the song inspires mixed emotions in people who either love it or hate it - I fall into the latter group, personally.

Answer: Christina Aguilera

Christina's first big hit came in 1999 with 'Genie in a Bottle', which reached number one or two in many countries around the world. She followed it up with 'What a Girl Wants' and 'Dirrty' among many others. 'Beautiful' was released in 2002 and was another huge hit, reaching number one on the UK Singles Chart and number two on the Billboard Hot 100. Christina has also done some film work, providing one of the voices in 'Shark Tale' (2004) for example.