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You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch
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Wikipedia article
"'You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch'" is a Christmas song that was originally written and composed for the 1966 cartoon special 'Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas!'
History
The lyrics were written by
Theodor "Dr. Seuss" Geisel, the music was composed by Albert Hague, and the song was performed by Thurl Ravenscroft. The song's lyrics describe the Grinch as being unpleasant, foul-smelling, bad-mannered, despicable, and diabolical, using increasingly creative put-downs, metaphors, similes and off-hand comments by the singer, beginning with the opening line "you're a mean one, Mr. Grinch".
Because Ravenscroft was not credited in the closing credits of the special, it is often mistakenly attributed to Boris Karloff, who served as narrator and the voice of the Grinch in the special but who himself was not a trained singer. Until Ravenscroft was publicly credited, Tennessee Ernie Ford was also speculated to be the voice behind the song.
The soundtrack to the special won the Grammy Award for Best Album for Children at the 10th Annual Grammy Awards.
The song has been incorporated into most other adaptations of the story. In the 2000 live-action film, Jim Carrey performs the song in character as the Grinch, singing about himself. The stage musical adaptation included the song in the score, among several other original numbers composed specifically for that production. The 2018 CGI animated film features a substantially updated version of the song from Tyler, the Creator.
The song was also covered by New Jersey alternative rock band the Whirling Dervishes. Writer Chris Jordan of the 'Asbury Park Press' called their version "wonderfully depraved in the best of holiday ways" and noted that their version had "become a Jersey classic."
Charts
Glee Cast version
Thurl Ravenscroft version
References
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