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"Parson Brown," "married" deleted from "Winter Wonderland" song
Fox Saturday Morning | 12/23/12

Posted on 12/22/2012 7:09:10 AM PST by pabianice

Was listening to Fox in the background. A local NYC kids' choir just sang "Winter Wonderland." You know, "In the meadow we will build a snow man, we'll pretend that he is Parson Brown, he'll say 'are you married?' we'll say, 'no, man', but you can do the job when you're in town..."

Except, the new words are, "we'll pretend that he's a circus clown..." and subsequent lyrics delete all reference to religion.

I find this repellant and just one more move toward making any reference to religion unacceptable. As a Jew I'm not up on Christmas songs, but is this what's being allowed to happen to our kids?


TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Education; Religion
KEYWORDS: antichristmas; purge; vanity
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To: Nepeta

I actually heard the womens underwear version in a grocery store — took me by surprise.

I have no problem with the circus clown stanza which is not new. It makes more sense if kids are singing the song!


41 posted on 12/22/2012 8:19:43 AM PST by Moonmad27 ("I'm not bad, I'm just drawn that way." Jessica Rabbitll)
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To: DoctorBulldog

Don’t believe what you read on Wiki, because it usually isn’t true. That Wiki story is a total fabrication. The song has been unchanged since it was first written.


42 posted on 12/22/2012 8:37:40 AM PST by Kirkwood (Zombie Hunter)
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To: pabianice

I guess they are just lucky they didn’t change the lyrics to be more Muslim friendly.....

And we will Pretend it’s Imam Mohammed...he’ll say do you worship Allah...we’ll so NO MAN! He’ll behead us when he’s in town.....


43 posted on 12/22/2012 9:02:52 AM PST by jakerobins
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To: pabianice

Obama took a jab at reference to religion.Remember when he said they still cling to their Bible and guns.Only four more years left until Mao’s little red book is the new norm.


44 posted on 12/22/2012 9:03:18 AM PST by Vaduz
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To: pabianice
Parson Brown?

I always thought it was Orson Brown. Talk about misheard lyrics!

That part never made much sense to me, obviously.

45 posted on 12/22/2012 9:07:55 AM PST by Larry Lucido
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To: pabianice
Parson Brown?

I always thought it was Orson Brown. Talk about misheard lyrics!

That part never made much sense to me, obviously.

46 posted on 12/22/2012 9:08:16 AM PST by Larry Lucido
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To: Kirkwood

re: “Don’t believe what you read on Wiki, because it usually isn’t true. That Wiki story is a total fabrication. The song has been unchanged since it was first written.”

No, the article is quite correct about the other verse being written back in the 1950’s. I’m a music history (classic and pop music) buff and it is quite true that the “clown” verse was written for kids to sing. You are correct that it wasn’t in the original version, but you can find the “clown” verse in kid’s music song books that go back to the 1950’s.

Wiki isn’t always wrong, but it’s true you need to check things out.


47 posted on 12/22/2012 9:09:55 AM PST by rusty schucklefurd
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To: pabianice
I have heard the "circus clown" version for sometime and assumed the PC crowd had done their censorship. However, has "don we now our gay apparel" in Deck the Halls been deemed homophobic?
48 posted on 12/22/2012 9:12:06 AM PST by The Great RJ
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To: pabianice
As a Jew I'm not up on Christmas songs ...

It's not actually a Christmas song. No mention of Christ or Christmas in it.

The composer, Felix Bernhard, was at least born Jewish, with a Yiddish-speaking mother. So feel free to sing it all you want.

The lyricist, Richard B. Smith, was in a sanatorium with tuberculosis when he wrote the words, and died young a few years later. So remember it's not entirely a happy song if you do sing it.

The alternative words were written for children to sing in 1953, and it looks like some later revisions kept the "circus clown" but took out the "kids" or "kiddies."

49 posted on 12/22/2012 9:25:42 AM PST by x
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To: Wiser now

I call songs like those “seasonal secular music,” while others, such as “Silent Night,” or “Adeste Fideles” are true Christmas songs.


50 posted on 12/22/2012 9:36:46 AM PST by Ax
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To: DoctorBulldog

Interesting. Unless the lyricist wrote that, according to copyright laws, it’s illegal to do that on a recording.


51 posted on 12/22/2012 10:01:01 AM PST by kabumpo (Kabumpo)
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To: pabianice

The complete song has both verses, always has.


52 posted on 12/22/2012 10:53:45 AM PST by Conservative4Ever (Dear Santa....I can explain.)
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To: RummyChick
Mathis sings about Parson Brown in that clip

Yes, and at around 2:27 in that video, he also sings about the danged circus clown.

So this is not a new thing, it's at least a 54-year-old thing.

53 posted on 12/22/2012 10:53:56 AM PST by hellinahandcart
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To: miss marmelstein
“Happy Winter”? No such thing. Christmas in one of the few things that makes winter bearable. Best Christmas I ever had was on a sailboat in Florida.
54 posted on 12/22/2012 11:34:54 AM PST by CrazyIvan (Obama's birth certificate was found stapled to Soros's receipt.)
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To: x

I think most of the lyricists and composers of great American Christmas songs were Jewish.


55 posted on 12/22/2012 1:50:56 PM PST by miss marmelstein ( Richard Lives Yet!)
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To: dagogo redux

Try finding an Advent calendar that has religious figures rather than Santa or snow men.


56 posted on 12/22/2012 1:53:32 PM PST by miss marmelstein ( Richard Lives Yet!)
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To: Tammy8

I also remember the cirucus clown words from several years ago.


57 posted on 12/22/2012 3:34:44 PM PST by Wicket (God bless and protect our troops and God bless America)
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To: pabianice

I find ‘Walking in a Winter Wonderland’ repellant in general - and a leading candidate for the title of Most Annoying Song Ever Written. :)


58 posted on 12/23/2012 12:16:18 PM PST by Mr. Jeeves (CTRL-GALT-DELETE)
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