White Christmas (song)
White Christmas is the title of a Christmas carol composed by Irving Berlin. The 1947 published version, sung by Bing Crosby, applies, with an estimated 50 million -selling singles, the best-selling single of all time.
Genesis
The successful composer Irving Berlin could not read music or write, he therefore left the writing of his works his secretary Helmy Kresa. Your he presented on January 8, 1940 his new composition White Christmas with a total of 48 cycles, which they then brought in the form of notes. To her, he noticed that it was in this title " is not just about the best song I 've ever written, but it is the best song ever written someone ". When Berlin the song then - cut to the originally planned opening verses - the rather taciturn Crosby introduced for the first time, this was already convinced at first: " In you need you to worry. "
Studio shot
Bing Crosby introduced the song on December 25, 1941 in his NBC radio show for the first time to the public. The following year, it came to the recording session of 29 May 1942 ( Decca DLA3009 ) in the Decca studios in New York City for the planned film Holiday Inn ( German title: music, music) with Crosby and Fred Astaire, for the next White Christmas were still added 5 more songs on that day; related total production in the film 12 Berlin songs with Crosby. It played the John Scott Trotter Orchestra, the choir accompaniment came from the Ken Darby Singers.
Publication
The seasonal Decca Single White Christmas / Let's Start The New Year Right ( # 18429 ) was released in August 1942, parallel to the film music, Music ( Holiday Inn), who came to the U.S. on August 4, 1942 in the cinemas. The dream of a white Christmas is not caught in the American mid-summer; only on 3 October 1942 the title was first published in the pop charts, where it reached the first place on 31 October, where he remained for 11 weeks. In the following years the romantic Christmas song still came 16 times in the top 30 and still twice reached the top of the charts, namely in 1945 and in January 1947. On March 19, 1947 had to Crosby himself in formation the song again record ( Decca L4374 ) because the master was damaged in 1942 by the frequent use. When almost identical arrangement but the violin part has been strengthened. This is the almost all disks and CDs only used the original recording and the title has led to success. Not least because of the recurring annual publication for Christmas, the song can make a huge sales success.
The soundtrack graced many Irving Berlin songs, which occupies the most prominent position White Christmas - the song sounds already in the opening credits and then again in the film, sung (once by Bing Crosby, one of Martha Mears ) and an instrumental version. The movie Holiday Inn received the 1943 Oscar for Best Original Song.
Sales Success
The sales figures are contradictory. It is clear that this Christmas Carol is one of the best selling singles of all time. His seasonal orientation will improve sales success each year. In the first five years, seven million copies sold until 1968 a total of 30 million in North America, the world another 32 million copies. The majority of the sources is of 50 million singles worldwide, the Guinness Book lays down on 30 million ( and over 100 million in all languages) firmly. David A. Jasen starts from 30 million singles. White Christmas is the world despite the great differences in board turnover the most valuable song copyright, especially since it comes every year to new record sales and mostly radio performances.
Thanks to the unbroken popularity of White Christmas, the song was a second time basis for a music film, this time directly under the title White Christmas ( German White Christmas) and back. Crosby in the lead role, the now Danny Kaye stood to the side When the film in the fall of 1954 was released, he became a blockbuster. In time for the theatrical release of the film also brought Frank Sinatra, now with a new record label - out another single version of White Christmas - Capitol Records. In 1957, both artists sang the title duet in Sinatra's TV show on ABC - TV, a highlight for Sinatra, who had always adored Crosby.
Statistics
Bing Crosby was successful not only with this single. A total of 396 of his titles came in the charts, among which were 38 number-one hits. The composer Irving Berlin penned the ASCAP According to 812 songs, of which 451 were to be Hits. The ASCAP published a communication that White Christmas the best Christmas song of all time was with 500 versions worldwide that has implemented about 125 million records in all languages in the world in 1998. It was taken in 2001 by the RIAA in second place in the list Songs of the Century.
Other carols achieved in terms of their seasonal repetition effect on average sales. Gene Autry's Rudolph, the Red- Nosed Reindeer brought it to 8 million, Bing Crosby Silent Night ( UK version of Silent Night, Holy Night ) came to 7 million.
Special
On 29 April 1975, the song was sent as a sign of evacuation of U.S. troops from Saigon on the radio and was thus the start of the operation Frequent Wind.