Thursday, December 8, 2011

The Great Christmas Song Quiz

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2011




How much do you know about Christmas music?  Try this Yuletide quiz and find out.


NUMBER 16 CHRISTMAS SONG QUIZ

1.  Where did the hymn "Silent Night" originate?

A.  England

B.  France

C.  Austria

D.  Germany

E.  United States



2.  Name the first film in which Bing Crosby sang "White Christmas."

A.  The Country Girl

B.  High Society

C.  White Christmas

D.  Holiday Inn

E.  Going My Way



3.  In The Twelve Days of Christmas, what do the lords do?

A.  They laugh.

B.  They lift.

C.  They leap.

D.  They leave.

E.  They lilt.



4.  The Beach Boys had a hit Christmas song.  What was it called?





A.  Little Saint Nick

B.  California Christmas

C.  I Want a Surfboard for Christmas

D.  Surfin' Santa

E.  Under the Mistletoe



5.  In the song "Little Drummer Boy," which two animals "kept time" with the drum music?

A,  The donkey and lamb

B.  The cow and lamb

C.  The ox and camel

D.  The ox and lamb

E.  The cow and camel



6.  Who had a hit song with "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree?"

A.  Leslie Gore

B.  Brenda Lee

C.  Annette Funicello

D.  Sandra Dee

E.  Connie Francis



7.  They looked up and saw a star
      Shining in the East beyond them far
      And to the earth it gave great light
      And so it continued both day and night

This is the second verse of which Christmas carol?

A,  Hark the Harald Angels Sing

B.  It Came Upon the Midnight Clear

C.  Angels from the Realms of Glory

D.  While Shepherd's Watch

E.  The First Noel



8.  In the song "We wish you a Merry Christmas," what kind of pudding is requested.

A.  Plum pudding

B.  Toffee pudding

C.  Figgy pudding

D.  Bread and butter pudding

E.  Yorkshire pudding



9.  Who first recorded the Christmas novelty song "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus?

A.  A 13-year-old American boy

B.  An 11-year-old English girl

C.  A 10-year-old Canadian girl

D.  A 12-year-old Canadian boy

E.  A 7-year-old American girl



10.  Bruce Springsteen recorded a version of this popular Christmas song.

A.  Jingle Bell Rock

B.  Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

C.  Jingle Bells

D.  Walkin' in a Winter Wonderland

E.  Santa Claus is Coming to Town



11.  In the popular Christmas carol "Good King Wenceslas," when does the king gives alms to a poor peasant?

A.  On Christmas Eve

B.  On the Feast of Stephen

C.  On Christmas morn

D.  On the 10th day of Christmas

E.  On Christmas Day at noon


ANSWERS

1.  C   Austria

The original words to "Silent Night" come from a poem written in German by a priest named Father Joseph Mohr.  Father Mohr was the assistant pastor at St. Nicholas Church in Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria.  Mohr asked his friend, schoolmaster Franz Xaver Gruber, to write some  music for his poem "Stille Nacht"   Gruber, the choirmaster and organist at St. Nicholas, composed the melody for "Silent Night" on Christmas Eve in 1818.


Fr. Joseph Mohr

2.  D  Holiday Inn

Bing Crosby sang "White Christmas" in the 1942 movie Holiday Inn in which he starred with Fred Astaire.  The film White Christmas was released 12 years later, in 1954.  To watch a clip of Bingo singing White Christmas in a duet with Marjorie Reynolds in Holiday Inn, click on the link below.  By the way, Marjorie Reynolds' voice was dubbed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXcNfA4qebQ


3.  C.  leaping

In the "Twelve Day of Christmas," the lords are a-leaping.


4.  A.  Little Saint Nick

"Little Saint Nick," originally performed by The Beach Boys, was written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love.  It was first released as a single in December of 1963.  Christmas celebrations were rather subdued that year due to the recent assassination of President John F. Kennedy.  "Little Saint Nick," however, reacher Number 3 on the Billboard Christmas charts.


5.  D  The ox and lamb

It comes from the following line in "Little Drummer Boy."

The ox and lamb kept time
Pa rum pum pum pum


6.  B   Brenda Lee

"Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" was written by Johnny Marx.  It was recorded by Brenda Lee in 1958.  I did not become a hit until 1960 when Brenda Lee's popularity had increased.

To listen to Brenda Lee singing "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree," click on the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6xNuUEnh2g


7.  E.  It is the second verse of "The First Noel."


8.  C  Figgy pudding

In the song "We Wish You a Merry Christmas," figgy pudding is requested.  Figgy pudding is a traditional English pudding with a history going back to the 16th century.  It is a custard-like dish made with figs or raisins, often at Christmas and can be steamed in the oven, baked, boiled or fried.




9.  A   A 13-year-old American boy named Jimmy Boyd first recorded "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus."  The song was composed by British songwriter Tommie Connor and reached the top of the charts in 1952.  Jimmy Boyd, who died of cancer in 1970, married Yvonne Craig of Batgirl fame in 1960.  The couple divorced in 1962.


A young Jimmy Boyd

10.  E.  Santa Claus is Coming to Town

To watch a video of Bruce Springsteen performing Santa Claus is Coming to Town, click on the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7ZOK7H8VGQ


11.  B  On the Feast of Stephen

The song begins with the words "Good King Wencelas looked out, on the Feast of Stephen."  The Feast of Stephen or St. Stephen's Day is celebrated on December 26th, the second day of Christmas, in the Western Church and on December 27th in the Eastern Church.  It commemorates St. Stephen, the first Christian martyr.


Good King Wencelas biscuit tin


- Joanne