A day or two ago
I thought I'd take a ride
And soon Miss Fanny Bright
Was seated by my side
The horse was lean and lank
Misfortune seemed his lot
We got into a drifted bank
And then we got upsot

- second verse of Jingle Bells, James Pierpoint, 1857

Not only does "Jingle Bells":
(a) have no reference to the birth of Jesus Christ, and
(b) depict a rather salacious situation in the second verse, climaxing with a non-existent adjective, but
(c) it's not even a Christmas song!

It was written in 1857 by James Pierpoint to mark that great celebration of invasion and colonisation, Thanksgiving.

And just like that other quintessentially American song, The Star-Spangled Banner, it originally had another title.

"Jingle Bells" was originally titled "One Horse Open Sleigh". Should have renamed it to "Getting Upsot with Fanny", if you ask me.

And that's the background to arguably the jolliest "Holiday" song of all... which features prominently in my A Christmas Carol Playlist 2, which is coming in a day or two and is well worth the wait!