"It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" is a popular
Christmas song written in triple time in 1963 by Edward
Pola and George Wyle. It was recorded and released that
year by pop singer Andy Williams for his first
Christmas album, The Andy Williams Christmas Album.
However, the song was not released as a promotional
single by Williams' record label (Columbia Records)
that year, as they instead opted to promote his cover
of "White Christmas" as the official promo single from
the album.
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"It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" is a popular
Christmas song written in triple time in 1963 by Edward
Pola and George Wyle. It was recorded and released that
year by pop singer Andy Williams for his first
Christmas album, The Andy Williams Christmas Album.
However, the song was not released as a promotional
single by Williams' record label (Columbia Records)
that year, as they instead opted to promote his cover
of "White Christmas" as the official promo single from
the album.
The song is a celebration and description of activities
associated with the Christmas season, focusing
primarily on get-togethers between friends and
families. Among the activities included in the song is
the telling of "scary ghost stories," a Victorian
Christmas tradition that has mostly fallen into
disuse,[2][3] but survives in the seasonal popularity
of numerous adaptations of Charles Dickens' A Christmas
Carol. Other activities mentioned include hosting
parties, spontaneous visits from friends, universal
social gaiety, spending time with loved ones, sledding
for children, roasting marshmallows, sharing stories
about previous Christmases, and singing Christmas
carols in winter weather.
In a 2005 interview, Williams discusses how The Andy
Williams Show figured into his recording of "It's the
Most Wonderful Time of the Year": "George Wyle, who is
a vocal director, who wrote all of the choir stuff and
all of the duets and trios and things that I did with
all the guests, he wrote a song just for the show – I
think the second Christmas show we did – called "Most
Wonderful Time of the Year". So I did that, you know,
every Christmas, and then other people started doing
it. And then suddenly it's become – not suddenly but
over 30 years – it's become a big standard. I think
it's one of the top 10 Christmas songs of all time
now."
Source: Wikipedia
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It%27s_the_Most_Wonderfu
l_Time_of_the_Year).
Although originally recorded for Voice and Orchestra, I
created this arrangement for Bb Clarinet & Strings (2
Violins, Viola, Cello & Bass).
SHEET MUSIC