O Holy Night

"O Holy Night" (original title: Cantique de Noël) is a sacred song about the night of the birth of Jesus Christ, described in the first verse as 'the dear Saviour', and frequently performed as a Christmas carol. Based on a French-language poem written in 1843 by poet Placide Cappeau, it was set to music by composer Adolphe Adam. The English version, with small changes to the initial melody, is by John Sullivan Dwight.

In modern times, the song has been covered multiple times, most notably by Mariah Carey and Lauren Daigle.

History
In Roquemaure, France, at the end of 1843, the town's church organ had recently been renovated. To celebrate the event, the parish priest persuaded poet Placide Cappeau, a native of the town, to write a Christmas poem. Cappeau's original poem began with the line, "Minuit, Chrétien, c'est l'heure solennelle" (Midnight, Christian, is the solemn hour).

In that same year, Adolphe Adam composed the music. The song was premiered in Roquemaure in 1847 by the opera singer Emily Laurey.

Unitarian minister, music critic, and editor of Dwight's Journal of Music, John Sullivan Dwight, adapted the song into English in 1855. This version became popular in the United States, especially in the North, where the third verse (including "Chains shall He break, for the slave is our brother, And in His name all oppression shall cease") resonated with abolitionists.

The wide vocal range of the song makes it one of the more difficult Christmas songs for a singer to execute properly. In French-language churches, it is commonly used at the beginning of the Midnight Mass.

Controversy
Adolphe Adam described Cantique de Noël as "a religious Marseillaise", in reference to the 1792 song that became the national anthem of France, around the time of the French Revolution of 1848. As early as 1864, the Revue de Musique Sacrée, a publication focused on Catholic liturgical music, noted that Minuit Chrétiens was sung in the streets, in bars, and at other social gatherings, and that the song had become "debased and degenerated". While not banned, the song was rarely included in the hymnals in France, despite its growing international popularity. Official French publications of Catholic music described Cappeau as a socialist and a drunk, and a falsehood about Adam being Jewish circulated; in 1930 Vincent d'Indy published an article that praised Richard Wagner and claimed that Jewish composers, including Adam, were only motivated by financial interest.

Catholic Church ban
On September 22, 1936, the Catholic Church in Canada banned "O Holy Night" from being performed in churches, along with other songs including wedding marches, the Canadian national anthem, and many versions of Ave Maria, including those by composers such as Franz Schubert, Charles Gounod, Pietro Mascagni, and Jules Massenet. Per the secretary of the archbishop, the reason for the ban of these songs was the desire for the promotion and exclusive use of Gregorian chant and Gregorian music.

On record charts
The song has been recorded by numerous pop, classical, and religious singers. Several renditions by popular artists have appeared on record charts:


 * 1994: Mariah Carey, from her first studio holiday album, Merry Christmas, reached on the US Billboard Holiday 100 chart. It was re-released as a single in 1996 and 2000; a re-recorded live rendition is included on her 2010 follow-up album Merry Christmas II You. In 2023, her single was certified Platinum in the United States by RIAA for selling over 1 million units. It reached  in Italy and it was certified Gold. It reached the top-twenty in Iceland, peaking at number 19.
 * 1996: John Berry on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart
 * 1997: Martina McBride on Hot Country Songs chart (also  in 1998,  in 1999,  in 2000, and  in 2001)
 * 1998: Celine Dion on Billboard's Holiday chart; in 2014, Nielsen SoundScan reported that her version had sold 240,000 copies in the US.
 * 2002: Josh Groban Billboard Adult Contemporary chart
 * 2006: Josh Gracin on Hot Country Songs chart
 * 2010–2011: Glee cast US Billboard Holiday Digital Song Sales chart
 * 2012: Ladywell Primary School in Motherwell, Scotland, released "O Holy Night" as a digital download on November 21, 2012. The school donated 90 percent of proceeds from the song to the Meningitis Research Foundation in memory of a student who had died of meningococcal septicaemia. The remaining 10 percent went to school funds. It reached on the UK Singles Chart.
 * 2017–2018: Lauren Daigle US Billboard Christian adult contemporary,  US Hot Christian Songs, and  US Christian Airplay charts