I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day
Encyclopedia
"I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" is a Christmas carol
based on the 1864 poem "Christmas Bells" by American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
.
, Longfellow's oldest son Charles Appleton Longfellow joined the Union cause as a soldier
without his father's blessing. Longfellow was informed by a letter dated March 14, 1863, after Charles had left. "I have tried hard to resist the temptation of going without your leave but I cannot any longer," he wrote. "I feel it to be my first duty to do what I can for my country and I would willingly lay down my life for it if it would be of any good". Charles soon got an appointment as a lieutenant but, in November, he was severely wounded in the Battle of New Hope Church
(in Virginia) during the Mine Run Campaign
. Coupled with the recent loss of his wife Frances, who died as a result of an accidental fire, Longfellow was inspired to write "Christmas Bells".
He wrote the poem on Christmas Day in 1864. "Christmas Bells" was first published in February 1865 in Our Young Folks, a juvenile magazine published by Ticknor and Fields
. It was not until 1872 that the poem is known to have been set to music. The English organist, John Baptiste Calkin
, used the poem in a processional accompanied with a melody he previously used as early as 1848.
, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, MercyMe
, Steven Curtis Chapman
, Johnny Cash
, and Jimmie Rodgers
have recorded this version. Less commonly, the poem has also been set to the 1845 composition "Mainzer" by Joseph Mainzer. Johnny Marks
, known for his song "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
", set Longfellow’s poem to music in the 1950s. Marks' version has been recorded by Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians, Ed Ames
, Kate Smith
, Frank Sinatra
, Sarah McLachlan
, Pedro the Lion
, Harry Belafonte
, The Carpenters
, Rockapella
, and Bing Crosby
. Marks' composition is now generally accepted as the de facto version and is generally what is used for modern recordings of the song, though Calkin's version is still heard as well.
In 1990, John Gorka
recorded his arrangement entitled "Christmas Bells", which uses stanzas 1, 2, 6, and 7 of the poem.
Bryan Duncan
recorded "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" on his album Christmas is Jesus (Myrrh Records).
In 2000, the vocal group Rockapella
began their album Christmas with an arrangement of the classic carol edition.
In 2002, Greg Gilpin set the words to the tune "Waly, Waly", an American Folk Song, in a sheet-music arrangement that is interesting because of its use of handbells to illustrate the words. It omitted the last verse.
In 2004, Pedro the Lion
recorded a version for the Maybe this Christmas compilation.
In 2005, Christopher Williams recorded a version on his album Unbroken Song (Big Red Van Music).
In 2006, Bette Midler
recorded the song for her album Cool Yule
.
In 2007, CCM
artists, Jars of Clay
included a version of the song on their Christmas Songs album.
In 2008, Mark Hall
, lead vocalist of Casting Crowns
, recorded his own arrangement, which was released on their Christmas album, Peace On Earth
.
In 2011, Richard Marx
recorded his version of the song for his The Christmas EP album.
Christmas carol
A Christmas carol is a carol whose lyrics are on the theme of Christmas or the winter season in general and which are traditionally sung in the period before Christmas.-History:...
based on the 1864 poem "Christmas Bells" by American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an American poet and educator whose works include "Paul Revere's Ride", The Song of Hiawatha, and Evangeline...
.
Origin
During the American Civil WarAmerican Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, Longfellow's oldest son Charles Appleton Longfellow joined the Union cause as a soldier
Soldier
A soldier is a member of the land component of national armed forces; whereas a soldier hired for service in a foreign army would be termed a mercenary...
without his father's blessing. Longfellow was informed by a letter dated March 14, 1863, after Charles had left. "I have tried hard to resist the temptation of going without your leave but I cannot any longer," he wrote. "I feel it to be my first duty to do what I can for my country and I would willingly lay down my life for it if it would be of any good". Charles soon got an appointment as a lieutenant but, in November, he was severely wounded in the Battle of New Hope Church
Battle of New Hope Church
The Battle of New Hope Church was fought May 25–26, 1864, between the Union force of Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman and the Confederate Army of Tennessee under Gen. Joseph E. Johnston during the Atlanta Campaign of the American Civil War...
(in Virginia) during the Mine Run Campaign
Battle of Mine Run
The Battle of Mine Run, also known as Payne's Farm, or New Hope Church, or the Mine Run Campaign , was conducted in Orange County, Virginia, in the American Civil War....
. Coupled with the recent loss of his wife Frances, who died as a result of an accidental fire, Longfellow was inspired to write "Christmas Bells".
He wrote the poem on Christmas Day in 1864. "Christmas Bells" was first published in February 1865 in Our Young Folks, a juvenile magazine published by Ticknor and Fields
Ticknor and Fields
Ticknor and Fields was an American publishing company based in Boston, Massachusetts.-Early years:In 1832 William Davis Ticknor and John Allen began a small publishing business which operated out of the Old Corner Bookstore located on Washington and School Streets in Boston, Massachusetts...
. It was not until 1872 that the poem is known to have been set to music. The English organist, John Baptiste Calkin
John Baptiste Calkin
John Baptiste Calkin was an English composer, organist and music teacher.Calkin got his musical education from his father James Calkin , a pianist, cellist and composer. From 1846 to 1853, he worked as an organist, preceptor and choirmaster at the St. Columba's College in Dublin...
, used the poem in a processional accompanied with a melody he previously used as early as 1848.
Versions
The Calkin version of the carol is the most popular. Elvis PresleyElvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, MercyMe
MercyMe
MercyMe is an American Christian rock band founded in Greenville, Texas. The band consists of vocalist Bart Millard, keyboardist James Bryson, percussionist Robby Shaffer, bassist Nathan Cochran and guitarists Michael Scheuchzer and Barry Graul....
, Steven Curtis Chapman
Steven Curtis Chapman
Steven Curtis Chapman is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, actor, author, and social activist.After starting his career in the late 1980s as a singer/songwriter of contemporary Christian music, Chapman has since been recognized as one of the most prolific singers in the genre,...
, Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
, and Jimmie Rodgers
Jimmie Rodgers (pop singer)
James Frederick "Jimmie" Rodgers is an American singer. He is not related to the country singer of the same name.-Career:...
have recorded this version. Less commonly, the poem has also been set to the 1845 composition "Mainzer" by Joseph Mainzer. Johnny Marks
Johnny Marks
Johnny Marks was an American songwriter. Although he was Jewish, he specialized in Christmas songs and wrote many standards, including "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer" , "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" , "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" , and "A Holly...
, known for his song "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer is a fictional reindeer with a glowing red nose. He is popularly known as "Santa's 9th Reindeer" and, when depicted, is the lead reindeer pulling Santa's sleigh on Christmas Eve. The luminosity of his nose is so great that it illuminates the team's path through...
", set Longfellow’s poem to music in the 1950s. Marks' version has been recorded by Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians, Ed Ames
Ed Ames
Ed Ames is an American popular singer and actor. He is best known for his pop and adult contemporary hits of the 1960s like "When the Snow is on the Roses" and the perennial "My Cup Runneth Over." He was part of a popular 1950s singing group called The Ames Brothers.-Early life:Born in Malden,...
, Kate Smith
Kate Smith
Kathryn Elizabeth "Kate" Smith was an American Popular singer, best known for her rendition of Irving Berlin's "God Bless America". Smith had a radio, television, and recording career spanning five decades, which reached its pinnacle in the 1940s.Smith was born in Greenville, Virginia...
, Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
, Sarah McLachlan
Sarah McLachlan
Sarah Ann McLachlan, OC, OBC is a Canadian musician, singer and songwriter. Known for her emotional ballads and mezzo-soprano vocal range, as of 2006, she has sold over 40 million albums worldwide. McLachlan's best-selling album to date is Surfacing, for which she won two Grammy Awards and four...
, Pedro the Lion
Pedro the Lion
Pedro the Lion was an indie rock band from Seattle, Washington. Singer-songwriter David Bazan formed the band in 1995 and represented its main creative force, backed by a varying rotation of collaborating musicians. T. W. Walsh is considered to be the sole official band member besides Bazan. In...
, Harry Belafonte
Harry Belafonte
Harold George "Harry" Belafonte, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, actor and social activist. He was dubbed the "King of Calypso" for popularizing the Caribbean musical style with an international audience in the 1950s...
, The Carpenters
The Carpenters
Carpenters were an American vocal and instrumental duo, consisting of sister Karen and brother Richard Carpenter. The Carpenters were the #1 selling American music act of the 1970s. Though often referred to by the public as "The Carpenters", the duo's official name on authorized recordings and...
, Rockapella
Rockapella
Rockapella is an American a cappella musical group formed in 1986 in New York City. Their name is derived from the words "rock" and "a cappella". They sing original vocal music and a cappella covers of pop and rock songs; over time, their sound has evolved from high-energy pop and world music...
, and Bing Crosby
Bing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
. Marks' composition is now generally accepted as the de facto version and is generally what is used for modern recordings of the song, though Calkin's version is still heard as well.
In 1990, John Gorka
John Gorka
John Gorka is a contemporary American folk musician. In 1991, Rolling Stone magazine called him "the preeminent male singer-songwriter of what has been dubbed the New Folk Movement."-Biography:...
recorded his arrangement entitled "Christmas Bells", which uses stanzas 1, 2, 6, and 7 of the poem.
Bryan Duncan
Bryan Duncan
Bryan Duncan is an American CCM musician. he is best known for his role in the Sweet Comfort Band and subsequent solo career that, combined, spanned more than twenty-five years...
recorded "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" on his album Christmas is Jesus (Myrrh Records).
In 2000, the vocal group Rockapella
Rockapella
Rockapella is an American a cappella musical group formed in 1986 in New York City. Their name is derived from the words "rock" and "a cappella". They sing original vocal music and a cappella covers of pop and rock songs; over time, their sound has evolved from high-energy pop and world music...
began their album Christmas with an arrangement of the classic carol edition.
In 2002, Greg Gilpin set the words to the tune "Waly, Waly", an American Folk Song, in a sheet-music arrangement that is interesting because of its use of handbells to illustrate the words. It omitted the last verse.
In 2004, Pedro the Lion
Pedro the Lion
Pedro the Lion was an indie rock band from Seattle, Washington. Singer-songwriter David Bazan formed the band in 1995 and represented its main creative force, backed by a varying rotation of collaborating musicians. T. W. Walsh is considered to be the sole official band member besides Bazan. In...
recorded a version for the Maybe this Christmas compilation.
In 2005, Christopher Williams recorded a version on his album Unbroken Song (Big Red Van Music).
In 2006, Bette Midler
Bette Midler
Bette Midler is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as The Rose, Ruthless People, Beaches, and For The Boys...
recorded the song for her album Cool Yule
Cool Yule
Cool Yule is a holiday album by Bette Midler released on October 10, 2006. The album features many Christmas tunes as well as a reworking of her Grammy-winning hit "From a Distance"....
.
In 2007, CCM
Contemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music is a genre of modern popular music which is lyrically focused on matters concerned with the Christian faith...
artists, Jars of Clay
Jars of Clay
Jars of Clay is a Christian rock band from Nashville, Tennessee. They met at Greenville College in Greenville, Illinois.Jars of Clay consists of Dan Haseltine on vocals, Charlie Lowell on piano and keyboards, Stephen Mason on lead guitars and Matthew Odmark on rhythm guitars...
included a version of the song on their Christmas Songs album.
In 2008, Mark Hall
Mark Hall (musician)
Mark Hall, Jr. is the lead vocalist for the Georgia-based Christian rock group Casting Crowns, a seven-member group made up of all youth pastors.-Early childhood:...
, lead vocalist of Casting Crowns
Casting Crowns
Casting Crowns is a Grammy Award and Dove Award winning Contemporary Christian/Christian Rock band. Casting Crowns was started in 1999 by youth pastor Mark Hall at First Baptist Church in Downtown Daytona Beach, Florida as part of a youth group. He now serves as a lead vocalist...
, recorded his own arrangement, which was released on their Christmas album, Peace On Earth
Peace on Earth (Casting Crowns album)
- Awards :In 2009, the album won a Dove Award for Christmas Album of the Year at the 40th GMA Dove Awards....
.
In 2011, Richard Marx
Richard Marx
Richard Noel Marx is an American adult contemporary and pop/rock singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He had a string of hit singles in the late 1980s and 1990s, including "Endless Summer Nights", "Right Here Waiting", "Now and Forever", and "Hazard"...
recorded his version of the song for his The Christmas EP album.
External links
- I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day: words and music from LDS.org
- Free MP3 download from LDS.org
- Song lyrics from AllChristmasLyrics.com