The Christmas Song

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I love the music of this time of year, and felt in the mood to sing one of my favorite songs for the holiday season: The Christmas Song. The karaoke arrangement is based on Nat King Cole's original version. Merry Christmas, everyone!

THE CHRISTMAS SONG

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire.
Jack Frost nipping at your nose.
Yuletide carols being sung by a choir
And folks dressed up like Eskimos.

Everybody knows
some good friends
and some mistletoe
Help to make the season bright.
Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow
Will find it hard to sleep tonight.

They know that
Santa's on his way. . .
He's loaded lots of toys and goodies
on his sleigh.
And every mother's child
is gonna spy
To see if reindeer
really know how to fly.

And so I'm offering
this simple phrase
To kids from one to ninety-two.
Although it's been said
many times, many ways,
"Merry Christmas to you."

And every mother's child
is gonna spy
To see if reindeer
really know how to fly.

And so I'm offering
this simple phrase
To kids from one to ninety-two.
Although it's been said
many times, many ways,
"Merry Christmas to you."

LYRICS

Because I'm a vegetarian, I changed one line, from:

Everybody knows
a turkey and some mistletoe
help to make the season bright.

to:

Everybody knows
some good friends and some mistletoe
help to make the season bright.

MUSIC

Inner Crooner — When I was an infant, we lived in an apartment in New York City. My mother would often need to leave to do errands, but I had "musician's ears", and, no matter how quietly she opened and closed the door on the way out, I'd hear it and started wailing in my crib. Until one day, she accidentally left a Bing Crosby record playing. . . and no sound came from the crib as she left! My mother had stumbled upon the secret for capturing my attention. Apparently I have an "inner crooner"! I'm letting him out, as I sing here. . .

PAST VERSIONS

2022. I first released a version of The Christmas Song for Christmas in 2022. The response I received was so positive that it led me to do all the many covers of songs I've done in the last couple of years. Because that earlier version of The Christmas Song was my very first real cover of a song, it is much more contained and less confident than my more recent singing.

In his original version, Nat King Cole ended with a bit of "Jingle Bells", and most covers of the song have done the same ever since. I thought I'd change it up a bit, and so I end with a bit of "Deck the Halls" instead. I like both endings!
piano: Juliet Forrester
piano introduction and piano ending: Chris Tong

2023. I always intended to return and do another version, and so that's what I did in 2023!

2024. There is a lot of overlap between the 2023 and 2024 version. But I did improve a few sections in this year's version.