After I included The Piano Guys’ Carol of the Bells in the first Friday Night Links, I got to thinking… I love Carol of the Bells so much, I could listen to it over and over… which naturally led to, why don’t I create a whole list of versions all in one place!
Coincidentally, the Weekly Writing Challenge this week is to “wrap it up” (“it” being 2012), for instance with a “top X list.” So, we’ll call this my Top 12 List of My Favorite Versions of the Carol of the Bells!
No. 12 — The Piano Guys. Let’s just start with a repeat of the one that got me going on this idea.
No. 11 — Mannheim Steamroller. A percussion instrumental, with a pretty good light show, too.
No. 10 – Mormon Tabernacle Choir. This is a beautiful rendition — including actual bells!
No. 9 –George Winston. A beautiful piano interpretation.
No. 8 — Trans-Siberian Orchestra. No list would be complete without this version — although I miss the harmonizing of the vocals, which is the whole point to the song, I think.
No. 7 – Jennifer Hudson with Sesame Street. Or, Sesame Street with Jennifer Hudson. You decide.
No. 6 — The Calling. A stripped down rock vocals and guitar mix. Compelling.
No. 5 –Destiny’s Child. A lovely slow and soulful version.
No. 4 – Pentatonix. If you didn’t catch this winner of the third (and last; drat!) season of The Sing-Off then your musical life is woefully deficient. This a capella group is Da Bomb!
No. 3 – Straight No Chaser. Another a capella group, this one formed long before The Sing-Off.
No. 2 – John Williams. From the Home Alone soundtrack. A classic.
No. 1 — Celtic Woman. A beautiful mix of symphony, harmonizing and breath-taking Celtic fiddle.
I’m just partial to all things Celtic, hence my “No. 1″ choice, but really I love this song so much that these could just be in any random order and I’d be happy. I’m sure there are other wonderful versions I’ve overlooked. If you find any, feel free to share a link in the comments.
The song actually has a colorful history, but I’ll let you read that on Wikipedia here. (Hey, in the spirit of the season, if you’ve got a couple of bucks to spare, Wikipedia would appreciate the donation.)
I hope you enjoy listening to all of these versions as much as I enjoyed compiling them!
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