“It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year”
Some Christmas songs are “owned” by one particular performer. Bing Crosby owns “White Christmas,” for example. No version of “The Christmas Song” tops Nat King Cole’s. And “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” written in 1963, will always be associated with the great Andy Williams.
I’m not sure what it says about contemporary America, but most of our popular Christmas songs (not hymns) were written in the 1940s and 1950s. According to ASCAP, of the 25 most-played Christmas songs, 21 were written in those decades. Two, including “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” are from the 1960s. And there’s one each from the 1970s and 1980s. None in the last 25 years.
The song is a simple statement of all the traditional elements of the Christmas celebration – being with family, going to parties, enjoying the warmth of the season. Because Christmas truly is – the most wonderful time of the year.