(If you’d like to read the other days, you can do so by clicking here. Don’t forget I’m making a playlist in Spotify as we go through this series, you can subscribe to here.)
Today, we turn our hearts toward home as we talk about two songs for Christmas. We all love being home on Christmas. If we can make it home, we do. If we can’t, we call or skype with those we love. Even if we don’t like going home, for whatever reason, we still often go home on Christmas. We endure home, even if just for a day.
I suppose it’s because we all want to go back to a simpler time. We’ve grown up now, and home isn’t as simple as it was when we were kids. We weren’t aware of the stresses of adulthood and the worries of life. We just loved Christmas. So, I think that’s part of it.
But I think there’s more to it than that. More to it than I can encapsulate in this simple post about Christmas songs. We love home because at our core we are beings created for family and community. It is in our nature to want to be connected. When we don’t have it, we yearn for it. It’s not just something we’d like to have, it’s something that we don’t feel complete without. Sure, there are those among us who claim they don’t like being around people. But, I don’t believe them. If you’re one of them, you can stop the act. We all know you love us. 🙂
So, as you listen to todays Christmas songs, feel free to be nostalgic and think about being Home for the Holidays!
(There’s No Place Like) Home For The Holidays
Released in November of 1954 by Perry Como, with music by Robert Allen and lyrics by Al Stillman, this song quickly became a Holiday favorite. It’s not specific to Christmas, though it suits the season quite well.
Como released another version of the song in 1959 with an entirely different arrangement, which is one of the best parts of this song. In fact, that’s one of the great things about most of Perry Como’s Christmas music and something I remember my Dad talking about as a kid. One of the things he enjoyed in particular was the use of the upright bass – which is very unique in its warmth and depth. And of course, it talks about home, where we all love to be.
I’ll Be Home For Christmas
Our next song, takes us to a time not many of us remember. It was recorded by Bing Crosby in 1943, (Lyrics by Kim Gannon, Music by Walter Kent – and Buck Ram got his name on the track through a law suit – having written a poem by the same title.) The was written during WWII, and is written from a soldiers’ perspective. And while the song ends with him dreaming of home, many of them didn’t make it home. The song serves as a reminder to us that there are soldiers who fight abroad to preserve our freedom. They don’t get to celebrate Christmas with their families. Some of them sacrifice time with loved ones, others sacrifice much more. At Christmas, we are especially grateful for their service and sacrifice.
Todays version comes from a new release, yet, instant classic – Michael Bublé and his album ‘Christmas’. One of the biggest reasons it is an instant classic, is once again due to the Arrangements and orchestration. There is a Christmas sound, and the arrangers for his album nailed it!
