We Wish You a Merry Christmas

Traditional

In the days of Merrie Olde England, a good part of life went on to the sound of music. Rich merchants hired bands to accompany them on strolls; peddlers enhanced their sales pitches with song; and a municipal chorus of singers, called waits, were licensed to sing out the hours of day or night, to greet visiting dignitaries, and to enliven weddings of the rich and near-rich. Waits were especially busy at Christmastime, serenading on frosty nights, telling the Nativity story in song, and generally making the festivities of that favorite holiday even merrier. In return, they might receive coins or a bit of fig pudding, spiced ale, or roasted pig. Many of the oldest carols are waits' carols, including "We Wish You a Merry Christmas."

Click here to listen to We Wish You A Merry Christmas!

We wish you a Merry Christmas;

We wish you a Merry Christmas;

We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

CHORUS

Good tidings to you wherever you are;

Good tidings for Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Oh, bring us a figgy pudding;

Oh, bring us a figgy pudding;

Oh, bring us a figgy pudding and a cup of good cheer.

CHORUS

We won't go until we've got some;

We won't go until we've got some;

We won't go until we've got some, so bring some out here.

We wish you a Merry Christmas;

We wish you a Merry Christmas;

We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.