"Do You Hear What I Hear?" is a song written in October 1962, with lyrics by

Noël Regney Noël Regney (born Léon Schlienger; 19 August 1922 – 22 November 2002), was a French World War II veteran and songwriter who is best known for composing the Christmas standard "Do You Hear What I Hear?" with his then-wife Gloria Shayne Baker in ...

and music by Gloria Shayne. The pair, married at the time, wrote it as a plea for peace during the

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis () in Cuba, or the Caribbean Crisis (), was a 13-day confrontation between the governments of the United States and the Soviet Union, when American deployments of Nuclear weapons d ...

. Regney had been invited by a record producer to write a Christmas song, but he was hesitant due to the commercialism of Christmas. It has sold tens of millions of copies and has been covered by hundreds of artists.

Synopsis

"Do You Hear What I Hear?" tells a story loosely based upon the story of the

Nativity of Jesus The Nativity or birth of Jesus Christ is found in the biblical gospels of Gospel of Matthew, Matthew and Gospel of Luke, Luke. The two accounts agree that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, Palestine, in Herodian kingdom, Roman-controlled Judea, th ...

as told in the

Gospel of Matthew The Gospel of Matthew is the first book of the New Testament of the Bible and one of the three synoptic Gospels. It tells the story of who the author believes is Israel's messiah (Christ (title), Christ), Jesus, resurrection of Jesus, his res ...

, incorporating fragments of the

annunciation to the shepherds The annunciation to the shepherds is an episode in the Nativity of Jesus described in the Bible in Luke 2, in which angels tell a group of shepherds about the birth of Jesus. It is a common subject of Christian art and of Christmas carols. Bibl ...

from the

Gospel of Luke The Gospel of Luke is the third of the New Testament's four canonical Gospels. It tells of the origins, Nativity of Jesus, birth, Ministry of Jesus, ministry, Crucifixion of Jesus, death, Resurrection of Jesus, resurrection, and Ascension of ...

, though Jesus is never mentioned by name or explicitly identified. A "night wind" tells a lamb of a

star A star is a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by Self-gravitation, self-gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night sk ...

, following which the lamb tells his young shepherd that he also hears a loud song. They are each led to a "mighty king," whom they tell of a child in the cold and ask to bring the child silver and gold (much as the

Biblical Magi In Christianity, the Biblical Magi ( or ; singular: ), also known as the Three Wise Men, Three Kings, and Three Magi, are distinguished foreigners who visit Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh in homage to hi ...

, which in tradition with prophecies in the

Book of Isaiah The Book of Isaiah ( ) is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible and the first of the Major Prophets in the Christian Old Testament. It is identified by a superscription as the words of the 8th-century BC prophet Isaiah ben Amo ...

and

Psalm 72 Psalm 72 is the 72nd psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "Give the king thy judgments, O God, and thy righteousness unto the king's son". In the slightly different numbering system used in the Greek Septua ...

are often characterized as kings, did with their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh). The king proclaims a prayer of peace and announces that the child will "bring goodness and light".

Lyrics

Regney wrote the lyrics for the song, while Shayne composed the music in October 1962. This was an unusual arrangement for the two writers. Usually, it was Shayne who wrote the lyrics for their songs while Regney composed the music, as they did when they wrote a song based on the classic children's song "

Rain Rain Go Away "Rain, Rain, Go Away" is a popular English language nursery rhyme. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 19096 and many different variations of it have been recorded. Lyrics and melody There are several versions and variations of this rhymin ...

". Regney was inspired to write the lyrics "Said the night wind to the little lamb, 'Do you see what I see?'" and "Pray for peace, people everywhere" after watching babies being pushed in

stroller Various methods of transporting children have been used in different cultures and times. These methods include baby carriages (prams in British English), infant car seats, portable bassinets (carrycots), strollers (pushchairs), slings, backpacks ...

s on the sidewalks of

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Shayne stated in an

interview An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" re ...

years later that neither could personally perform the entire song at the time they wrote it because of the emotions surrounding the Cuban Missile Crisis: "Our little song broke us up. You must realize there was a threat of war at the time".

Recordings

Original

"Do You Hear What I Hear?" was released shortly after

Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in October and November in the United States, Canada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Germany. It is also observed in the Australian territory ...

in 1962. The song was originally recorded for

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. Mercury Records released ...

by the

Harry Simeone Chorale Harry Simeone (May 9, 1911 – February 22, 2005) was an American music arranger, conductor, and composer. He spent much of his career working in film and television, but he is best remembered for directing the Harry Simeone Chorale, which popul ...

, a group that had also popularized "

The Little Drummer Boy "The Little Drummer Boy" (originally known as "Carol of the Drum") is a popular Christmas song written by American composer Katherine Kennicott Davis in 1941. First recorded in 1951 by the Austrian Trapp Family, the song was further popularized ...

", and released as part of the album ''The Wonderful Songs of Christmas with the Harry Simeone Chorale''. As a 45 rpm single, it went on to sell more than a quarter-million copies during the 1962

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...

holiday season.

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, comedian, entertainer and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwi ...

made the song into a hit when he recorded his own version of it on October 21, 1963, with the record being released as a single on October 26. Crosby also performed the song on a

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was an American comedian, actor, entertainer and producer with a career that spanned nearly 80 years and achievements in vaudeville, network radio, television, and USO Tours. He appeared ...

Christmas television special on December 13 of that year. Over the years, Crosby's recording of the song has been widely played on the radio and has been available on numerous compilation Christmas albums and compact discs put out by

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...

Cover versions

The song has been recorded by hundreds of artists. Among the most notable are: *

Andy Williams Howard Andrew Williams (December 3, 1927 – September 25, 2012) was an American singer. He recorded 43 albums in his career, of which 15 have been gold certified and three platinum certified. He was also nominated for six Grammy Awards. He hos ...

(1965 - ''

Merry Christmas The Christmas season or the festive season, also known as the holiday season or the holidays, is an annual period generally spanning from November or December to early January. Incorporating Christmas Day and New Year's Day, the various celebrat ...

'') *

Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, author, television personality, radio host and philanthropist. He sold nearly 50 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and has acted in many films. Boone ...

(1966 - '' Christmas Is A Comin''') *

Kate Smith Kathryn Elizabeth Smith (May 1, 1907 – June 17, 1986) was an American contralto. Referred to as The First Lady of Radio, Smith became well known for her renditions of "God Bless America" and "When the Moon Comes over the Mountain". She began ...

(1966 - ''The Kate Smith Christmas Album'') *

Diahann Carroll Diahann Carroll ( ; born Carol Diann Johnson; July 17, 1935 – October 4, 2019) was an American actress, singer, model, and activist. Carroll was the recipient of numerous nominations and awards for her stage and screen performances, incl ...

(1967 – ''The Great Songs of Christmas, Album Seven'') *

Jim Nabors James Thurston Nabors (June 12, 1930 – November 30, 2017) was an American actor, singer, and comedian, widely known for his signature character, Gomer Pyle. Nabors was discovered by Andy Griffith while working at a Santa Monica nightclub, and ...

(1967 - ''Jim Nabors' Christmas Album'') *

Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an American singer, actor, and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, from 1943 until 1987 ...

(1968 - '' The Perry Como Christmas Album'') *

Robert Goulet Robert Gérard Goulet (November 26, 1933 October 30, 2007) was an American‐Canadian singer and actor of French-Canadian ancestry. Goulet was born and raised in Lawrence, Massachusetts, until age 13, and then spent his formative years in Canad ...

(1968 - ''Robert Goulet's Wonderful World of Christmas'') *

Mahalia Jackson Mahalia Jackson ( ; born Mahala Jackson; October 26, 1911 – January 27, 1972) was an American gospel music, gospel singer, widely considered one of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century. With a career spanning 40 years, Jackson was ...

(1968 - ''Christmas with Mahalia'') *

Johnny Mathis John Royce Mathis (born September 30, 1935) is an American singer. Starting his 69-year career with singles of standard (music), standard music, Mathis is one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century and became highly popular as ...

(1969 - '' Give Me Your Love for Christmas'') *

Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer, actress, film producer, model, and philanthropist. Commonly referred to as "Honorific nicknames in popular music, the Voice", she is List of awards and no ...

(1987 - '' A Very Special Christmas'') *

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

(2009 - '' Christmas in the Heart'') Regney said that his favorite version of the song was performed by Robert Goulet; as ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' noted, when the singer came to the line "pray for peace, people everywhere", he "almost shouted the words".

Charts

Whitney Houston version

Houston originally recorded the song as part of the various-artists compilation '' A Very Special Christmas'' in 1987, omitting the first verse. Her version peaked at the top of ''Billboard'' Gospel Digital Songs and Gospel Streaming Songs on 2011 and 2018 and stayed for a record 42 weeks on former while 20 weeks on latter. On October 25, 2019,

Pentatonix Pentatonix (abbreviated PTX) are an American a cappella group from Arlington, Texas, consisting of vocalists Scott Hoying, Mitch Grassi, Kirstin Maldonado, Matt Sallee, and Kevin Olusola. Characterized by their pop-style arrangements wit ...

released their cover version featuring Houston's vocals, as part of the group's compilation album '' The Best of Pentatonix Christmas''. The Pentatonix version would go on to peak at number 9 on the US

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul ...

chart making it Houston's 25th Top 10 single on the chart.

Weekly charts

Whitney Houston with Pentatonix version

Year-end charts

All-time charts

Certifications

References

External links

* {{authority control 1962 songs American Christmas songs Anti-war songs Songs written by Noël Regney Songs written by Gloria Shayne Baker Glen Campbell songs Bing Crosby songs Andy Williams songs Cuban Missile Crisis Songs based on the Bible Whitney Houston songs Cold War in popular culture Works based on the Gospel of Matthew Cultural depictions of the Nativity of Jesus