SongsLast Thursday I had the pleasure of seeing David Archuleta perform at the Foxwoods MGM Grand Theater in Mashantucket, Connecticut. I am still on cloud nine from that very memorable experience.

Being in David’s presence is nothing short of amazing! Meeting David at the VIP ‘Meet and Greet,’ (my first), was so special…he simply glows. His aura is so bright and he is so kind and gracious. I will confess, I was a nervous wreck standing next to him! But the most wonderful part of the day was listening to David sing ‘live’ and watching him interact with the audience. He is so absolutely entertaining to watch, but listening to his beautiful voice is spectacular.

As it was his Christmas show and since Christmas is only days away, I have decided to wish everyone a very “Merry Christmas” with my Song of the Week! (This one goes out to two of the nicest David Archuleta fans I know…Janet and Trudy. I want to thank them both for adding to my wonderful time on Thursday. What a great day we all had!) 😉

The Song of the Week is…

“Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas”

“Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” was written by composer Hugh Martin (born August 11, 1914 in Birmingham, Alabama). He is a theater and film composer, best known for his score for the film Meet Me in St. Louis, which included “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”. Mr. Martin reportedly wrote the song for MGM in 1943, while he was vacationing in a house his father had designed for his mother in Birmingham, Alabama. That house, known as the Hugh Martin Cottage, is now a Historic Landmark in the city of Birmingham. Hugh Martin is a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Alabama Music Hall of Fame.

The Christmas song, “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas”, was first introduced to the public by singer and actress Judy Garland, when she appeared in the 1944 MGM musical film, Meet Me in St. Louis. In the film, Garland sings the song to her younger sister, expressing her feelings about the family being uprooted to New York. When first written, the song had a bitter tone, starting out “Have yourself a merry little Christmas/It may be your last/Next year we may all be living in the past…” Apparently, Garland did not like the bitter tone of the song’s sentiments, so she requested that some of the lyrics be rewritten to sound kinder. That led to the revised version that was used for the film which went “Have yourself a merry little Christmas/Let your heart be light/From now on our troubles will be out of sight…”

In 1954, popular singer Frank Sinatra wanted to record the song for a Christmas album he was making titled A Jolly Christmas. Sinatra asked Mr. Martin to try to come up with an even lighter version of the song for his album. At the time, Hugh Martin was visiting Birmingham. It was there that he was able to come up with the lyrics, “Hang a shining star upon the highest bough” as he was walking down a street in Birmingham called Highland Avenue. It was while looking up at the trees there that he composed that last line of the song. It is this final, even more modified version of “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” that is most like the song we hear artists do today.

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers ranks “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” as the sixth most recorded holiday song of all time.

Here is Judy Garland singing “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” from the 1944 musical, Meet Me in St. Louis.

The lyrics to the original version of “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” written by Hugh Martin for the film Meet Me In St. Louis:

Have yourself a merry little Christmas, Let your heart be light,
Next year all our troubles will be out of sight.

Have yourself a merry little Christmas, make the yuletide gay,
Next year all our troubles will be miles away.

Once again as in olden days, happy golden days of yore,
Faithful friends who were dear to us, will be near to us once more.

Someday soon 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.

David Archuleta recorded the song for his Christmas album, Christmas from the Heart, as a duet with singer Charice Pempengco. Here is that very lovely version:

Here are the lyrics that ended up being the final revision of the song, “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.” These are the words of the song we have all come to recognize today:

Have yourself a merry little Christmas,
Let your heart be light
From now on,
our troubles will be out of sight

Have yourself a merry little Christmas,
Make the Yule-tide gay,
From now on,
our 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 bough.
And have yourself A merry little Christmas now.

David singing a duet of “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” with his mom, Lupe, while on his Christmas from the Heart tour. Very touching!

And now, David Archuleta performing “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” on 12/17/09 at Foxwoods MGM Grand Theater, on 12/17/09. This performance was absolutely incredible ‘live’!

Here’s hoping that everyone who celebrates the Christmas season….has a “very, very merry little Christmas!” 🙂

Take care all,
Katie

Listen to Song of Last Week.

David Archuleta, the Voice