There is a great article in this week's Entertainment Weekly about how "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" became a holiday standard. I knew the basic history (Judy Garland debuted it in Meet Me In St. Louis), and that the song originally had lyrics that were almost suicidally depressing (they are printed at the end of the article). But I had no idea that the song actually had three rewrites, and that the version that most of us know and love today was modified at the request of Frank Sinatra, and originated on my favorite Christmas album. It's a great read, with quotes from Bette Midler, Chrissie Hynde and James Taylor about their versions of the tune. And it's probably the only time you'll ever hear about a 92 year old man getting excited about Twisted Sister.
This is the 1957 version of the song, from A Jolly Christmas From Frank Sinatra.
Frank Sinatra - "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" (mp3)
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