Top 5 Evergreen Christmas Carols!

Life

oi-Anwesha

By Anwesha Barari

Monday, December 19, 2011, 15:52

Christmas is less than a week away and what is the best way to set the mood for it? Music of course and that would mean jingling to the top Christmas carols for the season. Songs will come and go but some famous Christmas carols are evergreen; they stay for ever imbibed into our very experience of Christmas. Call it cosmopolitan, call it nonreligious but Christmas would not be so much fun without the tradition of Christmas carols. Every time we hum them, they bring back some half forgotten memory or the other and what are festivities without memories and moods.

This is a list of the top 5 Christmas carols that have and will be popular for ever.

Top 5 Christmas Carols That Are Evergreen!

1. Jingle Bells: Actually you might be surprised to know that this super famous carol gained popularity only in 1957 after Bobbly Helms recorded it. The song was composed by Joe Beal and Jim Boothe but it climbed the charts after this particularly peppy version was released. Since then several artists have done a cover version but none can match the popularity of this one.

2. Joy To The World: It is a fairly traditional carol compared to its predecessor. All those of us who have gone to convents must have sung this carol for prayer meetings. Actually, it is a hymn that was later made speedy. First composed by Isaac Watts in 1719, this English Christmas hymn had biblical inspiration. The popular cover version by Mariah Carey (1994) is a long way from that.

3. We Wish You A Merry Christmas: And a happy new year. One of the few Christmas carols that includes the turn of the year in its lyrics. This English carol is old but it is inspired from popular culture unlike its predecessor. This famous Christmas carol from the 16th century was sung by the minstrels at the palaces of the rich nobility to get generous gifts.

4. Silent Night: Serene, sombre and solemn; these three words are enough to describe this Christmas carol. It defines the basic definition of a carol (being fast and catchy) yet it is the most translated carol from English into any language; you can hear Silent Night in 300 languages. The reason for its solemnity is that it was sung by soldiers on both sides in the first World War when the battle broke for Christmas.

5. What Child Is This: Old is gold you would say and no Christmas traditions can be complete without the chanting of this hymn by William Chatterton Dix from way back in 1835. It is one of those songs that captured the imagination of all, be it pop artists or priests. It is truly festive music of evergreen songs that will be sung and sung again every Christmas until your grandchildren become old.

These were the top most Christmas carols for this season so rehearse and sing them for Christmas.