Category: A Carol a Day

THIS was requested by reader ‘TheMidgetHorror’, who wrote: ‘I was in the choir at my primary school in the 70s, and my favourite carol to sing was called Star of the East. It’s such a … Continue readingStar of the East

THE writer of this carol was considered in his day to be the equal of Charles Wesley, but of his 400 hymns and carols this is just about the sole … Continue readingAngels from the Realms of Glory

THIS much-loved Christian song has an unusual background: the words were by an atheist and the music by a man from a Jewish background. The verses were written in 1847 … Continue readingO Holy Night

IT’S been a lot of fun putting together these carols day by day, and the readers and I have been down some interesting byways, such as the debate about the … Continue readingThe Carols Collection

I FIRST encountered our last carol, Three Kings from Persian Lands Afar, when it was sung by the senior choir at my girls’ grammar school in about 1960, and I … Continue readingThree Kings from Persian Lands Afar

OUR penultimate carol, like Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, is by the great hymn-writer Charles Wesley. But while Hark! The Herald Angels was a Wesley original revised (and greatly improved) … Continue readingLo! He Comes With Clouds Descending

LIKE In the Bleak Midwinter, this carol is set in a fantasy Bethlehem with a British climate, instead of the mild Mediterranean temperatures the village actually enjoys. The singer Aled … Continue readingSee Amid the Winter’s Snow

I AM pretty sure that In Dulci Jubilo has the distinction of being the only Christmas carol to reach the top ten in the UK pop charts. Bing Crosby had … Continue readingIn Dulci Jubilo

TWO for the price of one today, as The Holly and the Ivy and the Sans Day Carol have similar themes. Decking homes with evergreens towards the close of the … Continue readingThe Holly and the Ivy/Sans Day Carol

TRADITIONALLY this carol is sung on Epiphany, the 12th day after Christmas, which marks the visit of some distinguished foreigners, usually called the Magi, to the infant Jesus after their … Continue readingAs with Gladness Men of Old