In keeping with the holidays, Classic Urban
Harmony once again turns the spotlight on a legendary harmony "Sound of the Season".
The Drifters - "White
Christmas"
"White Christmas" by the Drifters is indeed
unique. We'd be hard pressed to name another record by an R&B vocal
group that returns to such popularity year after year, fifty-five years after
it was first recorded. One of the top selling holiday records of all
time, the Drifters' "White Christmas" has become a chart record in at least
five different years. It has also been included in the sound tracks of
the movies Home Alone, The Santa Claus and Mixed Nuts. By resurfacing
every year, "White Christmas" has gradually become the best selling of all the
Drifters' records.
The song "White Christmas" was of course
written by Irving Berlin and introduced in the 1942 film Holiday Inn by
Bing Crosby. Indeed the Drifters were not the first vocal group to
record "White Christmas." The Sentimentalists (soon to become the Four
Tunes) recorded it in 1946 and the ravens recorded it in 1948. In fact
the Ravens' arrangement of "White Christmas" with the magnificent bass voice
of Jimmy Ricks served as inspiration for the Drifters version.
After a stint with the Dominoes, Clyde
McPhatter formed the Drifters in 1953. By February 1954, when they
recorded "White Christmas," the Drifters personnel included Clyde McPhatter
(tenor lead), Gerhardt Thrasher (tenor), Andrew Thrasher (baritone), Bill
Pinkney (bass) and Jimmy Oliver (guitar).
The Drifters, ca. 1953
Left to right: Bill Pinkney, Willie Ferbee, Clyde McPhatter,
Andrew Thrasher, Gerhardt Thrasher
By the time the Drifters recorded "White Christmas," Ferbee had left the
group.
Until that point, most Drifters records
featured the soaring tenor lead of Clyde McPhatter. "White Christmas,"
on the other hand, featured the bass lead of Bill Pinkney with Clyde taking
the lead on the bridge. "We wanted to do something different with
'White Christmas'," Bill Pinkney said in his autobiography, Drifters 1.
"We did it in a ballad-with-a-beat version that became a big hit.
Atlantic [Records] wondered what composer Irving Berlin would think. He
surprized everyone when he gave our version his blessings. He really
liked it and he contacted Atlantic with a letter of congratulations."
Bill Pinkney's biography
(From the Classic Urban Harmony Archives)
The Drifters' "White Christmas"
was first released in November 1954 on Atlantic #1048. Within a
few weeks it was #2 on the R&B Charts.
First press (1954) 45 RPM of
"White Christmas" on yellow Atlantic label
(From the Classic Urban Harmony Archives)
78 RPM of "White
Christmas"
(From the Classic Urban Harmony Archives)
1954 Ad for Drifters' "White
Christmas"
During the 1955 Christmas Season, Atlantic
Records reissued the Drifters' "White Christmas." It again reached the
R&B Charts Top-10, settling in at #5. It also reached #80 on the Pop
Charts.
1955 Ad for Drifters' "White
Christmas"
In the 1956 Holiday Season, Atlantic
released the Drifters' "White Christmas" for the third year in a row and for
the third time it broke into the R&B Charts Top-15, reaching #12. By
1956, Atlantic had changed the label color on its 45 RPM singles from
yellow to red. Thus, even though the Drifters' "White Christmas" was
issued as a 45 RPM single on Atlantic #1048 almost every year between
1954 and 1980, only copies pressed in 1954 and 1955 have yellow Atlantic
labels.
1956 Ad for Drifters' "White
Christmas"
Throughout the 1950's, 1960's and 1970's the
Drifters' "White Christmas" was released as a single every year. In 1960
and 1962, the record reached the bottom of the Pop Top-40 Charts.
Rare Promotional (DJ) copy of
Drifters "White Christmas" ca. late 1950's.
Note the Christmas Ivy on the right side of the label.
(From the Classic Urban Harmony Archives)
Drifters "White Christmas"
ca. 1960's.
Note the swirl (fan) now on the left side of the label.
(From the Classic Urban Harmony Archives)
Promotional (DJ) single of
Drifters "White Christmas" ca. 1970's.
Note "Warner Communications" on bottom of label.
(From the Classic Urban Harmony Archives)
Around 2002, an animated
cartoon of Santa and his Reindeer lip-syncing to the Drifters' "White
Christmas" began going around the Internet. It is usually credited to
cartoonist Joshua Held. Even if you've seen this a hundred times it's
still worth a play. We never get tired of it so we've embedded the
Youtube here for you to watch.
This year there's a new twist
on the Santa & his Reindeers singing the Drifters' "White Christmas."
Here's a YouTube of a video of the famous cartoon up in holiday lights,
complete with music. The person posting this YouTube has the display on
their house. It uses 4000 lights and requires 10 computer channels to
control the lights.
As 2009 comes to an end, the
Drifters' "White Christmas" is as popular as ever, a credit to the group that
recorded it.
![[New!]](images/smallnew.gif){kind=small}
