The Story Behind the Song: Do You Hear What I Hear?

At the height of the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, composer Noel Regney battled depression and flashbacks from his time in World War II.

As he walked down the street in New York, he watched mothers pushing babies in strollers and thought about the one moment in time when he felt that God had given men a chance for true peace.

Regney then wrote some lyrics and gave them to his wife Gloria, who wrote the music. The song was recorded a month later and released just before Christmas.

The command for people everywhere to “pray for peace” resonated with Cold War audiences, and newspapers reported that drivers who heard it for the first time on the radio were so struck by the words that they pulled their cars off the road to listen.

“Do You Hear What I Hear?” was an instant hit, selling 25 million copies during the holiday season.