From shopping at the mall to stations on the radio to carolers around the neighborhood, during the holiday season, Christmas carols can be heard everywhere. When you hear Silent Night, Deck The Halls or even All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth, we know Christmas is around the corner.
But where did the song originate? Many of our favorite Christmas songs have been around for quite some time and have fascinating and sometimes funny origins.
“Silent Night” is nearly two hundred years old and was written by a Catholic priest in Austria and was translated into English. Bing Crosby made it popular for more recent generations. In fact, his version is the third best-selling single of all time.
A newer song “Santa Clause is Coming to Town” was performed in 1934 by James Gillespie on a radio show. It became a hit within 24 hours of its debut. Since then it’s been performed beautifully by artists like Perry Como, Gene Autry, The Four Seasons, The Jackson Five, Bruce Springsteen, and many more.
“Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” was originally a poem penned in 1739 by Charles Wesley, brother of John Wesley, the founder of Methodism. The original opening line, as it appeared in his collection Hymns and Sacred Poems, was “Hark how all the welkin rings,” using a rarely invoked term for heaven. The version that we know today is a blend of Wesley’s song, along with adaptions by Felix Mendelssohn (the German composer) in the 1840’s.
“Deck the Halls” dates back to sixteenth century Wales, where its melody and much of the lyrics were pinched from the New Year’s Eve song “Nos Galan.” Lines like “Oh! how soft my fair one’s bosom/ Fa la la la la la la la la,” were transformed into Yuletide wishes like “Deck the halls with boughs of holly/ Fa la la la la la la la la.”
Another more recent song was “All I Want for Christmas is my Two Front Teeth.” The origin came from a second-grade teacher, from Smithtown, Long Island, who was taking song requests for Christmas songs from his students and their requests when spoken were in lisps because of a lot of them missing teeth. He wrote the song in 30 minutes and has become a favorite of every grade school student missing their front teeth.
“Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” lyrics were written by Hugh Martin for a scene in the 1944 movie musical Meet Me In St. Louis and was sung by Judy Garland. In the original draft, Judy Garland thought the lyrics were a bit too depressing and asked for them to be changed to something a bit merrier (they reluctantly did). In a way, we have Judy to thank for the beloved song.
Lastly, “Jingle Bells,” one of the most famous songs ever. There is a slight debate as to where the song originated. One account indicates it was actually intended as a Thanksgiving song in 1850’s Georgia. It was originally called “One Horse Open Sleigh” and, supposedly, people thought it was too racy to be sung by children in the choir. Some say Jingle Bells was a drinking song too. There’s a plaque in Medford, Massachusetts that claims it was written there. Regardless of where it was written, it has become a song universally loved by all.
Do you have a favorite Christmas carol? Tell us below.