Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

It’s one of my favorite Christmas songs, because of its jazzy chords and bittersweet sentiment, but Hugh Martin wrote its lyrics three times. “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” first appeared in the 1944 film Meet Me in St. Louis, sung by Judy Garland. But Martin’s original lyrics were so dark that Garland didn’t want to sing the song.

Have yourself a merry little Christmas
It may be your last
Next year we may all be living in the past

Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Pop that champagne cork
Next year we may all be living in New York

No good times like the olden days
Happy golden days of yore
Faithful friends who were dear to us
Will be near to us no more

But at least we all will be together
If the Lord allows
From now on, we’ll have to muddle through somehow
So have yourself a merry little Christmas now

Wow. I’m not sure what’s more remarkable, that “it may be your last” line or how living in New York is likened to some sort of death sentence. It was 1944, of course, and many people’s loved ones were overseas fighting in the war – for many, Christmas 1944 was indeed their last. But Judy Garland didn’t like the song, so Martin rewrote the lyrics. The version that appears in the film is less depressing – but still not what I’d call a happy song. It’s oddly appropriate for 2020, though.

Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Let your heart be light
Next year all our troubles will be out of sight

Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Make the yuletide gay
Next year all our troubles will be miles away

Once again as in olden days
Happy golden days of yore
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Will be near to us once more

Someday soon we all will be together
If the fates allow
Until then we’ll have to muddle through somehow
So have yourself a merry little Christmas now

It’s clear that times aren’t happy now in these lyrics, but there’s hope that things will be better “someday soon” or “next year.” This is the version of the song that gets its hooks into my heart and tears at it. If you don’t have a merry little Christmas now, if you wait until you can have that big perfect Christmas, you might lose your chance. And taking that time to find what joy you can is so very important.

Then came Frank Sinatra. He wanted to record the song for a 1957 Christmas album, but he didn’t want a sad song, so he went off to Hugh Martin and asked for yet another rewrite of the lyrics. Never mind that the lyrics had already been rewritten once, never mind that everyone would notice that the lyrics were different from the movie version. He was Sinatra, and he got what he wanted. That’s how the lyrics we mainly hear today came about.

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Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Let your heart be light
From now on, all our troubles will be out of sight

Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Make the yule-tide gay
From now on, our troubles will be miles away

Here were are as in olden days
Happy golden days of yore
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Gather near to us once more

Through the years we all will be together
If the fates allow
Hang a shining star upon the highest bough
And have yourself a merry little Christmas now

It’s still a bit bittersweet, because “our troubles” are still part of the landscape, but they won’t be gone “next year”; it’s “from now on.” Our faithful friends “gather near to us” now, not in the future. And that “hang a shining star” line replaces the “muddle through somehow” line. Troubles aren’t going away soon; they’re already gone.

But in real life, the prediction that troubles will go away forever seems impossible, especially as I write this in 2020. This third version rings a little false and hollow. Hope for the future is something we can’t let go of – but pretending everything’s already magically fine is ridiculous, especially now.

That’s why I sing the second version, the one from the movie. But if I may be permitted to change the last two lines my way, I prefer them this way:

Until then we’ll have to muddle through somehow
And have ourselves a merry little Christmas now

My best wishes to you for the best holiday season you can manage in these times.