That Civil War Christmas song, "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" brings me to tears EVERY SINGLE TIME! It shares such feelings of dispair and doubt and then ends with great hope. It flowed from the experiences of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow--which involved the tragic death of his wife and the crippling injury of his son from war wounds. It certainly still stands today, and when sung by Sinatra, well-<sniff, sniff>
Lyrics
I heard the bells on christmas day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
I thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all christendom
Had rolled along th unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
And in despair I bowed my head
There is no peace on earth, I said,
For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good will to men.
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
God is not dead, nor doth he sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth, good will to men.
Till ringing, singing on its way
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime, a chant sublime
We have had to leave school concerts when this song is played or sung. To him, it's a sad sad song.
I'm so glad it is ... highly underrated.
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