Enough About Winter Wonderland
Happy Holidays!
It's the season for festive spirit, being with loved ones, and the non-stop enjoyment of holiday classic music.
I’m particularly fond of The Waitresses Holiday Radio station on Pandora, as it has a nice mix of classic rock/Christmas songs and the traditional holiday songs of yesteryear.
One Christmas season, I noticed a disparity in the classic song: Winter Wonderland.
Christopher Walken in a Winter Wonderland :)
Found at: cheezburger.com
There are so many different singers and versions of Winter Wonderland.
Where did this song come from?
Why are there several different versions?
The origins of “Winter Wonderland”
According to familytree.com, Winter Wonderland was a poem written in Honesdale, Pennsylvania, by a local man named Richard Smith in 1934. He was in the West Mountain Sanitarium being treated for tuberculosis. While being treated, he entered contests for jingles and ads for companies.
“Winter Wonderland” mentions Parson Brown. He was a made-up character intended to represent Parsons. A parson was an independent priest of the Protestant faith who was not associated with any specific parishes or churches. At the time the poem was written, parsons traveled through the country performing interdenominational services and ceremonies when no one else was available to do so.
In 1934, Richard Smith showed his “Winter Wonderland” poem to his friend Felix Bernard. He was a Jewish musician who was touched by Richard Smith’s poem. He set out to compose a melody to go along with the poem.
Sadly, Richard Smith died in 1935, at the age of 34.
Since Smith’s passing, Winter Wonderland has been recorded as a holiday song by many artists, including Ella Fitzgerald, Dean Martin, Perry Cuomo, Bing Crosby, Amy Grant, Michael Bublė, Neil Diamond, Sarah McLachlan, Johnny Mathis, The Eurythmics, and Selena Gomez, just to name a few.
So where’s the disparity?
Remember the verse:
In the meadow we can build a snowman
Then pretend that he is PARSON BROWN
He’ll say: Are you married?
We’ll say: No man
But you can do the job
When you’re in town
If you recall back to when Smith wrote his poem, during the time when the song was written, parsons (a term for Protestant or Anglican ministers) would travel from town to town performing wedding ceremonies for those who did not have a local minister of their own faith.
According to wcicfm.com, the song's lyrics were about a couple's romance during the winter season. A later version of "Winter Wonderland" (which was printed in 1947) included a "new children's lyric" that transformed it "from a romantic winter interlude to a seasonal song about playing in the snow."
In the meadow, we can build a snowman
And pretend that he’s a CIRCUS CLOWN
We’ll have lots of fun with Mr. snowman
Until the other kids knock him down
The snowman mentioned in the song's bridge was changed from a minister to a circus clown, and the promises the couple made in the final verse were replaced with lyrics about frolicking.
Singers like Johnny Mathis connected both versions of the song, giving "Winter Wonderland" an additional verse and an additional chorus.
Mystery solved!
Now, we can all get back to enjoying our Christmas music for the remainder of the season with complete comprehension of the lyrics in Winter Wonderland.
There’s nothing better than giving gifts during the holiday season. Avoid the crowds; keep your credit cards in your wallet. Share the gift of random knowledge now that you know Enough About Winter Wonderland.
Merry Christmas and may this post find you and your loved ones in the midst of a joyous holiday season!
https://www.familytree.com/blog/the-story-behind-winter-wonderland/
https://www.wcicfm.org/song/winter-wonderland-3/
