Crosby family dreaming of a White Christmas Number 1
THE family of Bing Crosby have launched a fresh attempt for his classic hit White Christmas to be crowned number one in the UK charts.
An updated version of the festive track will be released next month as part of a new album titled Bing at Christmas, on which the American singer’s vocals are backed by orchestral arrangements performed by the London Symphony Orchestra.
His family hope the reorchestrated record will top the British charts for the first time since its original release 77 years ago.
Speaking on the 42nd anniversary of the singer’s death, his widow Kathryn said: “Hearing Bing’s voice with these completely new, beautifully recorded, orchestral accompaniments makes it seem as though he’s back after all these years. It’s magic.”
The record label Decca is releasing the album on Nov 22.
White Christmas, written by Irving Berlin, spent 11 weeks at number one in the US charts in 1942, before twice regaining the top spot in 1945 and 1947. However, its highest position on the UK chart was number five in 1977, the year Crosby died.
A spokesman said: “Despite these staggering sales figures, the song has never been number one in the UK. This year, the Crosby family wants to change that and, in Bing’s memory, get this newly-orchestrated version to its rightful place in the charts.”
Crosby’s voice will also be backed by Pentatonix, a Grammy Award-winning a cappella group.
The first public performance of White Christmas was broadcast on Christmas Day 1941 following the attack on Pearl Harbour, with Crosby later singing his version to American troops after it became a hit on the Armed Forces Radio Service.
More than 50 million copies of the song have been sold, making it the world’s bestselling single. It has been streamed 1.8 billion times.
The album will also feature new arrangements of Winter Wonderland, It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas, and Little Drummer Boy, Crosby’s duet with David Bowie, which was originally recorded in September 1977.