Silver Bells

Thursday November 13, 2008
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Silver Bells

Have you ever wondered why there was such an outpouring of wonderful Christmas songs written in America between World War II -- with “I'll be Home for Christmas” -- and the early 1950s -- with “Silver Bells”?
Some people believe it’s what the German’s call Zeitgeist, or the spirit of the times. Christmas Day 2006, What’s in a Song took you on a journey to Beverly Hills, CA, to try to answer this question. We’ll meet Ray Evans who, with his partner Jay Livingston, wrote the Christmas classic, “Silver Bells.” What's in a Song tries to get to the bottom of the creative Christmas spirit of those times and comes up with very little spiritual fodder to help us understand the yuletide inspiration of those days. In fact, Ray Evans, now 91 years old, tells of a funny story of just how “Silver Bells” came to be.

** “Silver Bells” was first heard in the 1951 Bob Hope comedy,
The Lemon Drop Kid.

City sidewalks, busy sidewalks

Dressed in holiday style

In the air there's a feeling like Christmas

Children laughing, people passing

Meeting smile after smile

And on every street corner you hear

Silver bells, silver bells

It's Christmas time in the city

Ring-a-ling, hear them ring

Soon it will be Christmas day

Strings of street lights

Even stop lights

Blink a bright red and green

As the shoppers rush home with their treasures

Hear the snow crunch

See the kids bunch

This is Santa's big scene

And above all the bustle you hear

Silver bells, silver bells

It's Christmas time in the city

Ring-a-ling, hear them ring

Soon it will be Christmas day

* Blogmeister’s Note:

Click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djfgoGAEU4E
to hear John Denver sing this wonderful classic
with accompanying video of Christmas in the city.




LARRY..CURTIS..SPURLOCK

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