"Jingle Bells" is one of the best known and commonly sung winter songs in the world. It was written by James Lord Pierpont (18221893) and copyrighted under the title 'One Horse Open Sleigh' on September 16, 1857. Despite being inextricably connected to Christmas, it is not specifically a Christmas song. It is one of many "joyful songs" written in New England during the late 19th century. When Pierpont's song was originally published in 1857, it had a different chorus melody, which was more classical, even Mozart-like.[citation needed] The 1857 lyrics differed slightly from those we know today. (The original words are given below in square brackets.) It is unknown who replaced the chorus melody and the words with those of the modern version.
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