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It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas
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Wikipedia article
"'It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas'" is a Christmas song written in 1951 by Meredith Willson. The song was originally titled "'It's Beginning to Look Like Christmas'". The song has been recorded by many artists, but was a hit for Perry Como and The Fontane Sisters with Mitchell Ayres & His Orchestra on September 18, 1951, and released on RCA Victor as 47-4314 (45 rpm) and 20-4314 (78 rpm). Bing Crosby recorded a version on October 1, 1951, which was also widely played.
History
Background and writing
A popular belief in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, holds that Willson wrote the song while staying in Yarmouth's Grand Hotel. The song makes reference to a "tree in the Grand Hotel, one in the park as well..."; the park being Frost Park, directly across the road from the Grand Hotel, which still operates in a newer building on the same site as the old hotel.It also makes mention of the five and ten which was a store operating in Yarmouth at the time.
It is also possible that the "Grand Hotel" Willson mentions in the song was inspired by the Historic Park Inn Hotel in his hometown of Mason City, Iowa. The Park Inn Hotel is the last remaining hotel in the world designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright, and is situated in downtown Mason City overlooking central park.
In popular culture
Meredith Willson incorporated the song into his 1963 Broadway musical 'Here's Love', where it is sung in counterpoint to the newly composed song "Pine Cones and Holly Berries".
Johnny Mathis recorded the song for his 1986 album 'Christmas Eve with Johnny Mathis'; this version gained popularity after its inclusion in the film 'Home Alone 2: Lost in New York'. Gradually, Mathis's recording began to receive wide radio airplay, and for the past several years this version has been a Top 10 Christmas hit.
Perry Como version
Perry Como and The Fontane Sisters with Mitchell Ayres & His Orchestra released their cover of "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" on September 18, 1951, becoming one of the biggest versions of the song, which is still widely played today, with over 128 million streams on Spotify as of August 30, 2020.
Weekly charts
Certifications and sales
Michael Bubl version
{{Infobox song
| name = It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas
| cover =
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = Michael Bubl
| album = Christmas
| released =
| recorded = 2011
| studio =
| genre =
| length = 3:27
| label = Reprise
| writer = Meredith Willson
| prev_title = Georgia on My Mind
| prev_year = 2012
| next_title = White Christmas
| next_year = 2012
|misc=}}
Canadian singer Michael Bubl's version was first released on October 24, 2011, as the first track of Bubl's 'Christmas' album. However, it was then released as the album's second single on November 18, 2012, achieving greater success. In the UK, the song peaked at number 7 in 2018.
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications and sales
Other notable versions
* 2002: America on their album 'Holiday Harmony'
* 2007: The Four Freshmen on their album.
* 2008: Harry Connick Jr. on his album 'What a Night! A Christmas Album'
* 2009: Connie Talbot on her album 'Connie Talbot's Holiday Magic'
* 2015: Jann Arden on her album 'A Jann Arden Christmas'
* 2016: Laura Pausini on her album 'Laura Xmas'
* 2017: Noah Cyrus on her promotional single
* 2018: Pentatonix on their album 'Christmas Is Here!'
* 2020: Meghan Trainor on her album 'A Very Trainor Christmas'
* 2020: Quintino on the album 'Home Alone (On the Night Before Christmas) EP'
References
Category:1951 songs
Category:American Christmas songs
Category:Andrea Bocelli songs
Category:Bing Crosby songs
Category:Johnny Mathis songs
Category:Olivia Newton-John songs
Category:Perry Como songs
Category:Reprise Records singles
Category:Richard Marx songs
Category:Songs written by Meredith Willson
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