It’s dangerous to
put a date in the title of a song, yet that’s what I did for this one. I only
did it because the song was a commission intended for only one occasion: a
Dowling High School choral concert in December 1989. The whole point of the
song was to contrast the celebration of old with the latest and most current
trends, yet how dated 1989 seems now as I read over the lyrics. DATs! Floppy
discs! How quaint! There may be a VHS tape of the performance floating around
somewhere, but I haven’t seen it in years. Decades.
It must have been
around the time of writing “Christmas ‘89” that I began work on what was to
become A Heart Calls Quietly. That
began as just another concept cassette based loosely on Lewis Carroll’s Sylvie and Bruno and Sylvie and Bruno Concluded, before
evolving into a full-length musical eventually produced onstage at the
Ingersoll Dinner Theater. Even though the show turned out to be not very good,
I sometimes feel like I peaked with it. I sure hope not. My mom was
instrumental in getting me going on both “Christmas ‘89” and A Heart Calls Quietly. (I never liked
the title A Heart Calls Quietly, and
still prefer my working title, The Best
Time For Magic.)
Christmas '89
© Brian Hutzell 1989On Christmas 1889, when Santa came to town
His gifts were dolls with eyes so bright and trains that chugged around
The tinsel glittered in the light from candles on the tree
As stockings, by the fireside, were hung on Christmas Eve.
Now it's 1989; a
thing or two has changed
Yet Santa Claus, on Christmas Night, still drives his magic sleigh
The bag he carries on his trip is much less of a strain
'Cause floppy disks and computer chips are lighter than those trains!
But a candle flame on Christmas Day still shines as bright as before
'Cause the fact remains
It's still the same and will be forevermore
It wasn't very long ago
Yet Santa Claus, on Christmas Night, still drives his magic sleigh
The bag he carries on his trip is much less of a strain
'Cause floppy disks and computer chips are lighter than those trains!
But a candle flame on Christmas Day still shines as bright as before
'Cause the fact remains
It's still the same and will be forevermore
It wasn't very long ago
Kids asked for an
LP that they heard on the radio
But now it's MTV
And no one wants a record; it's CDs or DATs
And Christmas lists are printed up on IBM PCs!
But a candle flame on Christmas Day still shines as bright as before
'Cause the fact remains
It's still the same and will be forevermore
How can a Teddy Bear compete with a laser gun?
Unless he's prepared with vocal software
And can rap when he gets down to fun!
And the fireplace has been replaced; look what I have now
It's a microwave with a liquid display
And sushi's not cooked anyhow!
But a candle flame on Christmas Day still shines as bright as before
'Cause the fact remains
It's still the same and will be forevermore
Who knows what Christmas in the year 2089 will bring
But here's one guarantee: the same light will shine!
But now it's MTV
And no one wants a record; it's CDs or DATs
And Christmas lists are printed up on IBM PCs!
But a candle flame on Christmas Day still shines as bright as before
'Cause the fact remains
It's still the same and will be forevermore
How can a Teddy Bear compete with a laser gun?
Unless he's prepared with vocal software
And can rap when he gets down to fun!
And the fireplace has been replaced; look what I have now
It's a microwave with a liquid display
And sushi's not cooked anyhow!
But a candle flame on Christmas Day still shines as bright as before
'Cause the fact remains
It's still the same and will be forevermore
Who knows what Christmas in the year 2089 will bring
But here's one guarantee: the same light will shine!
No comments:
Post a Comment