Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas - It May Be Your Last

 Today we sing two different versions of Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas - one written for Judy Garland to sing in Meet Me in St Louis (1944), and a revised version requested by Sinatra.  Neither version however, includes the original lyrics, which Garland refused to sing.

The lines  " ‘Have yourself a merry little Christmas // It may be your last // Next year we may all be living in the past.’" were rejected by Judy Garland. 

 She said that if she were to sing them in Meet Me in St Louis (1944) to Margaret, her younger sister in the film, that "“Margaret will cry, and they’ll think I’m a monster”.

Hugh Martin, songwriter for the film, had to be convinced to change the lyrics, something he was not keen to do.  He wrote the melancholy song, reflecting the sentiments of the time, with the nation immersed in World War II and may missing their soldiers abroad.  

The cast and crew had to persuade Martin to make some changes. 

Martin  did another rewrite later, sprinkling a little more joy into the melancholy song, per Frank Sinatra's request to "jolly it up",  in 1957.  The new version for Sinatra includes the line:

‘Hang a shining star upon the highest bough’, replacing "Until then we’ll have to muddle through somehow”

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The Original Lyrics:

Have yourself a merry little Christmas. 

It may be your last.

Next year we may all be living in the past.

Have yourself a merry little Christmas.

Pop that champagne cork.

Next year we may all be living in New York.

No good times like the olden days.

Happy golden days of yore.

Faithful friends who were dear to us. 

Will be near to us no more.

But at least we all will be together.

If the Lord allows.

From now on, we'll have to muddle through somehow.