Video and history of the song "White Christmas"

Écrite en 1940 par le compositeur américain Irving Berlin, White Christmas a rapidement connu un immense succès, avant de devenir un classique de tous les temps. Même aujourd’hui, ce cantique de Christmas tourne encore sur les ondes des stations radiophoniques pendant la période des fêtes.

Les circonstances entourant l’origine de la song n’ont pu être confirmées, mais l’histoire raconte qu’Irving Berlin l’aurait écrite alors qu’il était assis près de la piscine de l’hôtel Biltmore de Phoenix en Arizona. Après avoir passé des nuits entières à écrire, il aurait déclaré à son secrétaire qu’il venait de composer la meilleure chanson que quiconque ait jamais écrite.

Bing Crosby was the first to perform White Christmas in December 1941, during his NBC show The Kraft Music Hall. Although an initial recording was made during this broadcast, no record of it appears to exist. It wasn't until May 29, 1942, that Bing Crosby recorded the first official version, with the John Scott Trotter Orchestra and the Ken Darby Singers. This version also holds an all-time record, with 50 million copies sold.

Also in 1942, Bing Crosby sang it as a duet with Marjorie Reynolds in the film Love Sings and Dances. Then, during World War II, it is said that several soldiers were touched by the nostalgic lyrics, which also moved many Americans.

On October 3, 1942, "White Christmas" hit the charts, and by the end of the same month, it had reached number one. It reached the top of the charts again in 1945 and 1947. Bing Crosby's 1949 album, "Merry Christmas," also became one of the most popular Christmas albums.

That same year, White Christmas received the Academy Award for Best Original Song. The English version that we still hear today is the one recorded on March 19, 1947, since the original 1942 tape had been damaged.

Over the years, many artists have interpreted the famous White Christmas in their own way, including Frank Sinatra, The Drifters, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Louis Armstrong, Tony Bennet, The Supremes, and Billy Idol. Although it has also become a classic, Elvis Presley's version was described as vulgar by Irving Berlin, who even tried to have it banned from the airwaves.

Francis Blanche is the one who translated White Christmas into French, which he named Noël blanc. Many artists have also performed it in French, including Dalida, Tino Rossi, Eddy Mitchell, and Céline Dion, to name a few.

Music video of performances of the Christmas song.

White Christmas music video with lyrics – performance by Shania Twain.

White Christmas – Celtic

White Christmas – childhood memories

Connie Talbot (in Japan) sings White Christmas

White Christmas by Dalida

Celine Dion sings White Christmas

White Christmas – Eddy Mytchell

Lyrics French version

Oh! When I hear Christmas carols
I like to revisit my childhood joys
The glittering fir tree, the silver snow
Christmas my beautiful white dream

Oh! When I hear ringing in heaven
The hour when the good old man descends
I see your clear eyes again, Mom
And I think of other white Christmases

The night is full of joyful songs
The wood crackles in the fire
The table is already set
Everything is ready for my friends
And I wait for the time when they will come
Listening to all my memories

Oh! When I hear Christmas carols
I like to revisit my childhood joys
The glittering fir tree, the silver snow
Christmas my beautiful white dream

Oh! When I hear ringing in heaven
The hour when the good old man descends
I see your clear eyes again, Mom
And I think of other white Christmases
I see your clear eyes again, Mom
And I think of other white Christmases

English version lyrics

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas
Just like the ones I used to know
Where the treetops glisten,
and children listen
To hear sleigh bells in the snow

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas
With every Christmas card I write
May your days be merry and bright
And may all your Christmases be white

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas
With every Christmas card I write
May your days be merry and bright
And may all your Christmases be white