Today is the fourth day of The Twelve Days of a Tony Bennett Christmas.

The song of the day for Saturday, December 17, 2016 is “The Christmas Song.”

About This Song

“The Christmas Song” was written in 1944 by Mel Tormé and Bob Wells. Sometimes known by its first line ‘Chestnuts roasting on an open fire,” this song was written on a very hot summer day and Tormé and Wells were trying to think cold Christmasy thoughts in an effort to cool off. The entire song was written forty minutes and is one of America’s most classic Christmas songs. The first recording was by Nat King Cole in 1946.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “The Christmas Song” in 1967 for the album Snowfall: The Tony Bennett Christmas Album, released the following year. The recording was arranged and conducted by Robert Farnon.

“The Christmas Song,” as well as the album Snowfall, is available from iTunes.

About Today

We have a very sweet video of Tony Bennett singing today’s song. I am pretty sure it was recorded in London, but I’m not sure when. No worries … it’s still wonderful to listen to.