We wanted to do a Christmas Album melding some of the classics with some new songs.  We also wanted to meld the spirit of Santa Claus with the soul of the birth of Jesus.  We also needed energy because so many of the classics are ballads.  Lastly, if we handled a classic, I wanted to make sure that we brought something new to it.

What is more classic than Jingle Bells?  But oh how that has already been done!  I researched the song and found a most interesting story.  “Jingle Bells was written by James Lord Pierpont (1822–1893) and published under the title “One Horse Open Sleigh” in the autumn of 1857.” (Wikipedia) The story goes that our Mr. Pierpont wrote the song for a church choir Thanksgiving event, but the song was turned down by the church board as being too secular.

I also learned that there were an additional 2 verses written to accompany the “Dashing through the snow” verse and the “A day or two ago, I thought I’d take a ride …” verse.  Pierpont’s story went on to explain that our sleigh passenger who decided to put movie star Fanny Brice in the seat next to himself, then fell out of the sleigh, lay in the snow injured while another sleigh passed him by not caring to stop and help and I suppose he eventually got up and walked home cold and wet.

Well, somehow that’s just not a story I want to tell, thought I.

It had also struck me that the song might work smashingly well done as a waltz.  Since, by now, Pierpont’s verses were in the Public Domain, I decided to rewrite his ending more in the flavor of a beautiful Christmas time sleigh ride through the snow, and just keep it at that.

We think it worked wonderfully – if I do say so myself.  Jenny Burton and I joined Julia in her sleigh and this unlikely trio takes an old-fashioned ride through a winter wonderland in the early evening light and in the quiet of night.

Jingle Bell Waltz

Original Music and Lyrics by James Lord Pierpont
Additional Music and New Lyrics by Peter Link

Dashing through the snow
In a one-horse open sleigh
O’er the fields we go
Laughing all the way

Bells on bob tail ring
Making spirits bright
What fun it is to ride and sing
A sleighing song tonight

Oh jingle bells, jingle bells,
Jingle all the way.
Oh what fun it is to ride
In a one-horse open sleigh

Hey! jingle bells, jingle bells,
Jingle all the way;
Oh what fun it is to ride
In a one-horse open sleigh

A night or two ago
We thought we’d take a ride
Dashing through the snow
Across the countryside

The moonlight through the trees
And all the wintry white
Was such a wondrous sight to see
We forgot it was the night

Oh what a night it was
Oh what a time it was

We lost all time that night
But finally turned around
Exhausted by the night’s delight
And sadly homeward bound

The air was cold and grey
The quiet most profound
The clip clop of the horse’s hooves
And bells the only sound

Ooooooh jingle bells, jingle bells,
They jingle all the way;
Oh my what a great night it was to ride
In a one-horse open sleigh

Jingle bells, jingle bells,
Laughing all the way
Oh what fun it is to ride
As we slide across the countryside

Oh what fun it is to ride
In a one-horse open sleigh

Oh what fun it is to ride
In a one-horse open sleigh