The Night Before Christmas on Sesame Street
as read by David (Northern Calloway)
‘Twas the night before Christmas on Sesame Street
And the people were sleeping, ‘cause the people were beat
The snow had been falling for most of the day
And it lay over everything, sooty and grey
Now I was asleep with a gift of my Mama’s
A warm woolly pair of red flannel pyjamas
When what should awake me from out of my dream
But a crash and a bang and a couple of screams
So up from my bed I arose with a shout
And ran to the window to check this scene out
The noise might of come from a mischievous kid
Or grouchy old Oscar, flippin’ his lid
But then what I saw nearly put me away
In the middle of Sesame Street, there’s a sleigh
With a jolly old guy, kinda smilin’ and cute
In a white flowing beard and a heavy red suit
Jumpin’ into my coat, I ran on out
‘Cause I had to discover what this was about
When I got to the sleigh this old dude said to me
“Please pardon the noise. I ran into a tree.
I ruined my sleigh, lost the boots off my feet,
and the toys from my bag are all over the street.”
From the way that he spoke, it was easy to dig
This cat simply had to be somebody big
So I said, “That’s no problem. I’ll lend you my sled
And an old pair of boots I keep under my bed.”
Then we picked up the street full of toys, he said “Great,
But I’m hassled and rushing terribly late,
So I’ve got to split. There’s appointments to keep,
And David, it’s time you were gettin’ to sleep.”
I said, “Sure, but you’re using my sled for your pack
And how do I know you’ll bring my sled back.”
Well, this sucker just giggled with all of his might
And he got on my sled and he flew out of sight!
I called after him, “Hey man, don’t put me on.
Please tell me your name.” But by then, he was gone
The street was deserted, nobody was there
The toys and the sled disappeared in thin air
Well there’s only person who flies Christmas night
So I knew that fat guy was Santa Claus, right?
And I really felt proud because you better believe
That I was the hero of that Christmas Eve
Next morning I woke up and jumped out of bed
And under the tree was a shiny new sled!
That’s how I helped Santa on one Christmas visit
And it’s only a story I made up, or is it?
Transcribed by Wendy Nichols
originally released on the album
Merry Christmas From Sesame Street (1975)
Children's Television Workshop