Christmas drew a new image of "Santa Claus" annually, beginning in 1863. By the 1880s, Nast's Santa had evolved into the modern vision of the figure, perhaps based on the English figure of Father Christmas. The image was standardized by advertisers in the 1920s and continues through the present day. Father Christmas, a jolly, stout, bearded man who typified the spirit of good cheer at Christmas, predates the Santa Claus character. He is first recorded in early 17th century England, but was associated with holiday merrymaking and drunkenness rather than the bringing of gifts. In Victorian Britain, his image was remade
Christmas Is Coming Christmas Is Coming "Christmas Is Coming" is a nursery rhyme and Christmas song (frequently sung as a round) with lyrics as follows: The traditional version of this song uses the melody of the English dance tune "Country Gardens", but other melodies exist. Edith Nesbit Bland composed a popular tune for the lyrics. The Kingston Trio recorded the song as "A Round About Christmas", on their album "The Last Month of the Year". A calypso sounding version was featured on the album "" and a loose, jazzy piano-based arrangement was featured in the musical score of "A Charlie Brown Christmas". The