Of all the Christmas standards, “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” is the one I have the hardest time warming up to.
I blame Bert and Ernie.
Let me explain: When I was about 9 years old, I used to go to the library to borrow cassette tapes. Not generally music tapes, but stories: Dr. Who stories, Star Wars stories, Scary Halloween stories. I would pile them up at the library counter, and bring them home to listen to on my super cool Fisher-Price tape deck.
One of those tapes was “Christmas Eve on Sesame Street.” I still loved Sesame Street at age 9, but a lot of forces in my life – peers, older brother, He-Man – were conspiring to make me think that it was just about time to leave Sesame Street behind.
The last track on that tape was “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” sung by Bert and Ernie. Something about their delivery was so cutesy and trite that I just couldn’t stomach it. I suddenly imagined my school friends, who were all into hockey and wrestling and GI Joe, standing around my bed, watching me in disbelief as I listened to Bert encouraging me to hang a shining star upon the highest bough. I hit the ‘stop’ button and avoided this song for years.
In the time since, I’ve heard a version or two that aren’t terrible (Ingrid Michaelson’s comes to mind) but generally, it’s still the song that puts me in my grinchiest mood.
Thankfully, Britain’s Ben Laver created this beautiful interpretation, and has helped me get over a decades-old grudge against Sesame Street’s most famous duo.
What makes this a beautiful song:
1. It’s instrumental. Maybe part of the reason I never liked this song was the cheesy lyrics. Laver’s instrumental version has forced me to admit that the melody is actually quite pretty.
2. It oscillates between major and minor. Laver does this with a few of the songs on this album, and it somehow manages to conjure more reverence than most overly-happy Christmas songs do.
3. It’s quiet. No matter how much we try to avoid the rush and panic of the Christmas season, this tends to be one of the most tiring times of the year. This song makes me want to find a quiet spot to curl up and do nothing for a while.
Recommended listening activity:
Adding three layers of blankets to your bed.