The dogs all start to barkin’ just before the dawn
Some say it was Sally’s ghost, some say car alarms
I’m howling like a reindeer would flying without care
Gleam of snowflakes falling down, that’s Christmas in the air
Lonesome Joe lives up the street, hangs colored lights up high
Every couple of years or so he’ll slip on down the ice
See him hanging off the eaves ‘til someone lends a hand
All part of the season now, his feet touch back on land
Christmas comes but once a year, the snow in fits and starts
It’s cold and it is dark round here and I just haven’t got the heart
To tell Tommy and his Sister that Aunt Sally won’t be coming
That’s just the way the world rolls round, sometimes it gets bumpy
The cats are making trouble trying to climb up in the tree
That ornament from ‘64 don’t look the same to me
The greeting cards keep fading out and the magnets get so weak
Refrigerator’s nearly bare of the food I bought last week
Christmas comes but once a year, the snow in fits and starts
It’s cold and it is dark round here and I just haven’t got the heart
To tell Tommy and his Sister that Aunt Sally won’t be coming
That’s just the way the world rolls round, sometimes it gets bumpy
It’s time to take down all the lights, ring in the new year
Hope it’s gonna burn so bright, hope you stay right here
For all you merry gentle ones, let us keep along the path
And give or take, the gifts we make are better than the last