Perhaps on of the most recognized, best loved Christmas songs didn't start out as a Christmas song. Mel Torme was sitting in his beautiful suburban home in Hollywood in the middle of July when he started thinking about the sights and smells of Christmas. He started writing down what he remembered and The Christmas Song was born. Mel had a meeting scheduled later that week with an up and coming singer, who was breaking barriers left and right. At the meeting, he showed the singer the song, and Nat King Cole knew he had an amazingly magical song in his hands. Together Torme and Cole put the song together and recorded it. It debuted in October and stayed on the charts for a while. The Christmas Song not only became an iconic classic by itself, but it pushed the boundaries of the social atmosphere. When Nat King Cole recorded this song, he became the first African-American singer to cross into the mainstream musical world. Before then, music was highly segregated, but this song crossed the line and showed everyone Christmas was the same to everyone. Here's a broadcast of Nat King Cole singing Mel Torme's The Christmas Song.
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