More Music of Christmas – Day 8: White Christmas

“White Christmas”
By The Drifters

“White Christmas” is a perennial holiday classic, even if it didn’t originally come from the movie White Christmas. When you mention the song, most people envision Bing Crosby’s golden tones painting a picture of fresh snow covering a quaint town, Christmas just around the corner. Irving Berlin’s lyrics are timeless and classic, and you can’t imagine Christmas without the song.

It’s a great song. You know how I know that to be true? Because great songs can be sung in nearly every genre and still be great. Case in point – this version by the Drifters, released in 1954. It speeds up the tempo and changes it from a ballad to a doo-wop song. It plays with the melody, giving it a bounce that could wreck the song, but instead it transforms it into such a fun piece of music.

Many people my age won’t remember this song from the radio; instead, we remember Macaulay Culkin as Kevin McAllister singing along in the original Home Alone in the infamous shaving scene, where he stings the hell out of his face with aftershave. Ever since seeing that scene, my brother and I would always sing along to this version.

Many years later, this song would be featured in an animated viral video, which you can see above. It’s very fitting — it’s just fun.

Such good stuff.

Tomorrow – ring those bells.