Don't Wait 'til the Night Before Christmas to Be Good
Words and Music by Samuel Lewis and Abel Baer (published in 1938)
Arranged by Betsy Lee Bailey (2002)
Arranged by Betsy Lee Bailey (2002)
When I was a little girl, my aunt Janie Thompson taught me this song, "Don't Wait 'til the Night Before Christmas to Be Good." She had me singing in a Kids Trio when I was five years old. This was just one of many songs we learned to sing for her traveling shows at Christmas time. I just accepted that she wrote it. Many years later, I found out that not only did she NOT write it, but it had been written way back in 1938! And, it had been recorded many times by various singers including Rosemary Clooney, who was a popular actress and singer from the 1940's through the 1990's.
It was always our family song. I had never seen any actual sheet music. My aunt and my mom just played it from memory. My mom taught it to her children and we sang it every Christmas through the 1960-1970's, when enough of us were old enough to actually sing the parts, in harmony of course with the solos. In the 1980's, I taught it to my children and my school chorus. Then, in 2002, I was asked to actually write it out so a chorus could sing it for a Holiday Show at the elementary school. Adorable kids always made this song a delight for the audience!
It was always our family song. I had never seen any actual sheet music. My aunt and my mom just played it from memory. My mom taught it to her children and we sang it every Christmas through the 1960-1970's, when enough of us were old enough to actually sing the parts, in harmony of course with the solos. In the 1980's, I taught it to my children and my school chorus. Then, in 2002, I was asked to actually write it out so a chorus could sing it for a Holiday Show at the elementary school. Adorable kids always made this song a delight for the audience!
