Composers Hugh Martin and Ralph Blaine were assigned to write songs for Meet Me in St. Louis, starring Judy Garland. Among those that they came up with were The Boy Next Door, The Trolley Song and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. The movie was about a family who must relocate to New York after the Holidays and an important part of the story was how they did not want to leave their happy life in St. Louis. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas was written for Garland to sing to child actress Margaret O’Brien. And in keeping with the plot, it was a sad song. When Frank Sinatra decided to record a cover in 1957, he requested Martin and Blaine for a happy version. This is what we now listen to from Sinatra and other artists who thought of it as a beautiful Christmas song that they just had to record their own version.
SOUNDS FAMILIAR - Baby A. Gil - The Philippine Star
December 24, 2023 | 12:00am
I was only able to watch the musical Meet Me in St. Louis on Betamax many years after it was released in 1944. But I was already familiar with one of its soundtrack songs, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas because of the movie The Victors.
That film was a war drama from 1963 and the song was used in a scene where a deserter soldier was executed. It was a poignant moment which I never forgot. It was rendered more powerful with the sound of Frank Sinatra singing Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas as background music.
To this day, despite many other versions I still think of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas as the saddest Christmas song ever written. Now, I recently found out that how it was originally written was even sadder.
How can anybody write a sad song about Christmas? Well, composers Hugh Martin and Ralph Blaine did. The songwriting duo was assigned to write songs for Meet Me in St. Louis, starring Judy Garland. Among those that they came up with were The Boy Next Door, The Trolley Song and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.
The movie was about a family who must relocate to New York after the Holidays and an important part of the story was how they did not want to leave their happy life in St. Louis. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas was written for Garland to sing to child actress Margaret O’Brien. And in keeping with the plot, it was a sad song.
Very sad indeed. Check out the original lyrics which I found in an article by Ellen Gutosky in the online mag Mental Floss.
“Have yourself a merry little Christmas/ It may be your last/ Next year we may all be living in the past/ Have yourself a merry little Christmas/ Pop that champagne cork/ Next year we may all be living in New York.
“No good times like the olden days/ Happy golden days of yore/ Faithful friends who were dear to us/ will be near to us no more.
“But at least we all will be together if the Lord allows/ From now on we’ll have to muddle through somehow/ so have yourself a Merry Little Christmas now.”
The message was, have yourself a merry little Christmas while you can because next year will be different for us.
Garland’s reaction was instantaneous. “If I sing that to little Margaret O’Brien, the audience will think I’m a monster.”
The tale says that it took Martin and Blaine some convincing but they later agreed to work on the song. After some editing or I should say a little tweaking, Garland had the song she wanted and a true Christmas classic was born.
However, it was still sad. So, when Sinatra decided to record a cover in 1957, he requested Martin and Blaine for a happy version.
And this is what we now listen to from Sinatra, Michael Bublé, Ella Fitzgerald, Kelly Clarkson, The Carpenters, John Legend, Sam Smith and so many others who thought of it as a beautiful Christmas song that they just had to record their own version.
“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 Yuletide 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 will be 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.”
And that is how that shining star made it to the highest bough. Isn’t it just amazing what a little tweaking can do to the lyrics of a song.
Merry Christmas, everyone.
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