We Need a Little Christmas
"We Need a Little Christmas" is a popular Christmas song originating from Jerry Herman's Broadway musical, Mame, and first performed by Angela Lansbury in that 1966 production.[1]
In the musical, the song is performed after Mame has lost her fortune in the Wall Street Crash of 1929, and decides she, her young nephew Patrick, and her two household servants "need a little Christmas now" to cheer them up.[2] The original lyrics include the line, "But, Auntie Mame, it's one week past Thanksgiving Day now!" Since the time the song was written the phenomenon of Christmas creep has resulted in the normal holiday season beginning much earlier than it once did, which has led to more recent recordings changing the line to, "But, Auntie Mame, it's one week from Thanksgiving Day now!"
Notable recordings
- Percy Faith with His Orchestra & Chorus (1966)
(Christmas Is... Percy Faith)[3] - Bugs Bunny & Friends with Daffy Duck (1994)
(Have Yourself a Looney Tunes Christmas)[4] - Mormon Tabernacle Choir with Angela Lansbury (2001)[5]
(later appeared on the choir's 2006 album, The Wonder of Christmas) - Legacy Five (2007)
(Little Christmas)[6] - Kimberly Locke (2007)
(Christmas)[7] - Ages and Ages (2012)
(Holidays Rule)
Charts
| Percy Faith Orchestra and Chorus version | |
|---|---|
| Charts (2005) | Peak position |
| Hot Adult Contemporary Recurrents | 25 |
| Kimberley Locke version | |
|---|---|
| Charts (2008) | Peak position |
| Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 19 |
| Glee Cast version | |
|---|---|
| Charts (2010) | Peak position |
| Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 15 |
References
- ↑ Crump, William D. (15 September 2001). The Christmas Encyclopedia, 3d ed. McFarland. p. 436. ISBN 978-1-4766-0573-9.
- ↑ Collins, Ace (2010). Stories Behind the Greatest Hits of Christmas. Zondervan. p. 183. ISBN 978-0-310-32795-0.
- ↑ Percy Faith & his Orchestra. "Christmas Is...Percy Faith". Columbia. November 1966. http://www.allmusic.com/album/christmas-is-percy-faith-mw0000315399
- ↑ Bugs Bunny & Friends. "Have Yourself a Merry Looney Tunes Christmas". Kid Rhino. 1994. http://www.allmusic.com/album/have-yourself-a-looney-tunes-christmas-mw0000448358
- ↑ Mormon Tabernacle Choir. "We Need a Little Christmas...Christmas Special". 8 May 2015. https://www.mormontabernaclechoir.org/videos/we-need-a-little-christmas-angela-lansbury.html
- ↑ Legacy Five. "Little Christmas". Daywind. 18 December 2007. http://www.allmusic.com/album/little-christmas-mw0000581616
- ↑ Kimberley Locke. "Christmas". Curb. 6 November 2007. http://www.allmusic.com/album/christmas-mw0002568642