A first on the Calendar - not the song itself, that was Day 24 in 2007 by The Pretenders and Day 25 in 2009 by Judy Garland - rather this is the first time I've really wanted a particular song on the list and looked for a suitable version instead of finding the song first.
Even in happier times this has always made me reach for some water to swallow something hard and jagged and this year the lyrics - new or old - seem hugely prescient. I felt strongly this song needed to feature again this year.
Actually, there's a fascinating story about the lyrics to this as they originally read 'Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas / It may be your last / Next year we will all be living in the past'. Judy Garland who was singing it in the film 'Meet Me in St Louis' objected to the tone of the song - calling it 'too depressing' - and, begrudgingly, songwriter Hugh Martin changed it to the beautiful 'Someday soon we all will be together / If the fates allow / Until then we'll have to muddle through somehow'.
Frank Sinatra later decided to record the song for his first Christmas album and asked Martin to change the lyrics again for a more upbeat outlook. Probably now realising the worth of the composition would certainly mean he and his family would never need to work again, Martin obliged a little more willingly this time and changed them to 'Hang a shining star upon the highest bough'.
Torn on which version to chose, I'm eventually going for '2 for 1' deal. Perhaps more in keeping with the spirit of the Calendar, I'm featuring First Aid Kit's stark, bitter version
But I'm also backing it up with the sumptuous, heart-melting tone of Karen Carpenter - my Go To version - for the second.
Ignoring the first draft of Hugh Martin's lyrics, I'm hoping everyone reading this embraces the second, and manages the third.
Stay safe everyone!
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