More Music of Christmas – Day 4: Skating

“Skating”
By the Vince Guaraldi Trio

Today I revisit the beloved TV special, “A Charlie Brown Christmas”.  Last year — one year to the date, to be exact — I wrote about one of the songs from the show, namely “O Tannenbaum”.  That song, whenever I hear it, instantly brings to mind the cartoon, Charlie Brown and Linus searching for the perfect tree.  It’s a song synonymous with the season, obviously, but its inclusion in the TV special cements it as a classic.

The song “Skating” is also linked to feelings of Christmas and the holiday, as I mentioned last year. From the first arpeggio of the piano keys to the jazz waltz upbeat tempo, this song causes all the memories of childhood Christmases and sitting in front of the TV, glued to the screen every December as CBS would spin that logo and reair the entire cartoon.

The tempo and bounce bring a happy mood, and the piano runs bring to mind all the kids twisting and twirling along the ice in their skates. And I can see Snoopy grab hold of Linus’s security blanket with his teeth, and then swing the kid around and around.

Vince Guaraldi and his trio penned another classic song here. The entire special is legendary for many reasons, and the music is a huge reason.

Tomorrow — let’s learn a new word.