Maynard’s Seasonal Trivia
There’s magic in music. Part of that magic is in the lyrics, and I’m one of the people that actually listens to words. I recently found there were two alternate sets of lyrics to “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”.
It started with the original bittersweet lines, sung by Judy Garland for the wartime “Meet Me in St. Louis” (see this clip). Later, Frank Sinatra “improved” the song with a layer of sugarcoating. Sinatra’s are the “popular” lyrics you’re more likely to encounter. But if you pay attention to the endless parade of Christmas music, you’ll probably experience both sooner or later.
Okay, maybe I’m admitting to a symptom of mental dysfunction, but unwarranted optimism makes me want to puke. It’s the struggle I can relate to, even when I fear that nothing’s gonna turn out okay. Indeed, it’s the sense of a shared struggle and perhaps a shared doom, rather than a sense of a shared celebration, that truly pulls us together. Or so I believe. Anyway, here’s what Judy Garland sang:
Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Let your heart be light
Next year all our troubles will be out of sightHave yourself a merry little Christmas
Make the yuletide gay
Next year all our troubles will be miles awayOnce again as in olden days
Happy golden days of yore
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Will be near to us once moreThrough the years, we all will be together
If the fates allow
Until then, we’ll have to muddle through somehow
So have yourself a merry little Christmas now.
Yes, here we are, muddling through, in pursuit of an elusive tomorrow that may not materialize. That’s life, isn’t it? And if it weren’t that way, our triumphs would be hollow.
But Frank Sinatra figured we couldn’t deal with that, so he gave us saccharine. Hear it and note the changes:
Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Let your heart be light
From now on your troubles will be out of sight.Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Make the yuletide gay
From now on your troubles will be miles away.Here we are as in olden days,
Happy golden days of yore,
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Gather near to us, once more.Through the years we all will be together
If the fates allow,
Hang a shining star upon the highest bow,
And have yourself a merry little Christmas now.
This may be more popular. But is it true? Is it right?
Or maybe I’m giving Sinatra a bad rap. It seems he recorded both versions in his day; here’s his take on the original.
Good food for thought, Maynard. My goal in life is to balance a sense of optimism and focusing on what I want rather than what I don’t want, while also being grounded in “what is”. Obviously, this can be quite challenging.
That being said, in my opinion, the better lyric artistically and emotionally is the “muddle through” version. Of course, Frank could sing the alphabet and it would be beautiful.
Maynard, no need to despair about the absence of despair. The lyrics can be deconstructed sardonically if you wish.
Make your feeble little effort to ease the pathos of the human condition. Distract yourself with images of festive merriment. Unforeseen troubles lie in wait far into the future. The Golden years are in the past. We are alone save for a few who may leave us any moment. We are at the mercy of the fates. Your highest hopes are precariously placed. Seize a fleeting moment of delusion now.
Feel better? 😉
Well, we’ll have to muddle through the lyrics changes SOMEHOW… 😉