The timeless charm of Merry Christmas Darling

I have not heard if the two-disc Christmas Collection album by The Carpenters will be released locally but no matter what happens, Christmas songs by the popular duo from the ’70s will always be among the Pinoy’s top favorites. The brother and sister team of Richard and Karen released two, Christmas Portrait in 1970 and Old Fashioned Christmas in 1985 made up of songs from The Carpenters TV Christmas Special and from the Portrait sessions which was released after Karen’s death in 1983.

Both albums were distinguished by an eclectic mix of Christmas songs magically-arranged by Richard and mostly sung by Karen’s incredible alto. There were traditional carols, Silent Night, O Come O Come Emmanuel, religious hymns, an Ave Maria, He Came Here For Me, pop carols, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, Santa Claus Is Coming To Town and even ballet music, selections from Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker. But the one that instantly stood out and which went on to become a contemporary classic was the bittersweet Merry Christmas Darling.

I do not know when the belief started that the Christmas celebration becomes an extra emotionally traumatic time if spent apart from a loved one. Maybe it was because tradition dictated that Christmas should be spent with family and having a loved one means looking forward to raising a family. Christmas is definitely more than that. It is peace on earth and goodwill towards men and redemption through the supreme sacrifice, etc. But all that gets swept away when people fall in love and all that remains is the wish to spend the holidays with the object of one’s affections.

There have been a lot of songs written with that theme. Blue Christmas is one. There is also You’re All I Want For Christmas. Filipinos are among those who agree in a big way with the sentiment. In fact, a lot of our Christmas songs composed in recent times are about being sad because one is apart from the loved one on Christmas. Miss Kita Kung Christmas, Pasko Na Sinta Ko, Sana Ngayong Pasko and A Perfect Christmas are among those that easily come to mind.

It is no wonder then that Merry Christmas Darling was a big hit here when it came out. Merry Christmas Darling, we’re apart it’s true but I can dream and in my dreams, I’m Christmasing with you…I recall hearing the song everywhere during those Martial Law times and how everybody seemed to want a copy of the Carpenters’ Christmas Portrait LP with its red cover. Well, we were not really alone in that. Christmas Portrait and the single Merry Christmas Darling were worldwide hits and the Richard Carpenter-Frank Pooler composition has since been acknowledged as one of the best pop Christmas songs ever written.

The Carpenters are among the biggest selling pop acts of all time. Among their hits were (They Long To Be) Close To You, Top Of The World, A Song For You, Only Yesterday, We’ve Only Just Began, For All We Know, Rainy Days And Mondays, Superstar, Ticket To Ride, Please Mr. Postman, Sing, I Won’t Last A Day Without You, Hurting Each Other, I Have You, Yesterday Once More, Solitaire and I Just Fall In Love Again. Karen died in 1983 from heart failure brought about by anorexia nervosa. Her public battle with the disease helped raise awareness about it all over the world. Richard lives in Los Angeles with his family.

Speaking of Christmas albums, it seems like there is really no escaping the 20-year-old wonder Taylor Swift these days. While her latest CD Speak Now is now No. 1 and she has 10 hit singles at the same time, Sounds Of The Season: The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection from three years ago, is now also the No. 1 selling Christmas album in the US.

Some of the other holiday big sellers we should give a listen to are A Merry Little Christmas by Lady Antebellum; My Christmas by Andrea Bocelli and David Foster; Let It Snow by Michael Bublé; Noel by Josh Groban; The Christmas Collection by Amy Grant; The Perfect Gift by the Canadian Tenors; The Christmas Collection by Il Divo; The Essential Now That’s What I Call Christmas by Various Artists; and Elvis Christmas by Elvis Presley.