Of the five Christmas albums I own that include “Here Comes Santa Claus,” four of them have it as the first track:

• Christmas with the Chipmunks, The Chipmunks
• Croon and Swoon: A Classic Christmas, Bing Crosby & the Andrews Sisters
• Christmas RFD, Merle Haggard
• A Very Special Christmas, The Pointer Sisters

Only one, Christmas Guitar Dreams with the Legendary Joe Pass, puts it later on the album. The first track is “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!”

Coincidence or unwritten rule? It does have a nice anticipatory tone for a lead-in.