Just hear those sleigh bells jingling, ring tingle tingling too. Come on, it’s lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with you. Outside the snow is falling and friends are calling, “yoo hoo!” Come on, it’s lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with you.

This song was originally written as an Orchestral composition in the late 1940s by Leroy Anderson. After it was recorded by the Boston Pops Orchestra in 1949, Mitchell Parish wrote lyrics, which were originally recorded by the Andrews Sisters in 1950. However, the most popular version of this song, recorded by The Ronettes, thirteen years later in 1963.

Interestingly, the original song never mentions any holiday, though most of us have come to associate it with the Christmas season. Whether it is played or sung, you can hear the frosty joy of the winter landscape in every note.

On a personal note, my grandpa was a percussionist who got to study under John Philip Sousa, and the symphonic version of this song always makes me think of him – because it has a rockin’ percussion part that gets to use all the “bells and whistles.”

So, whether you’re sweating down south or beginning to enjoy the cold up north, enjoy these two versions of Sleigh Ride.

Traditional Hymns & Carols – Joy to the World

Lessons & Carols – Good Christian Friends Rejoice