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One-Man A Cappella Parody Discusses Where Comma Goes in 'God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen'

Grammar enthusiasts gather ’round: this comma-focused parody version of God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen is for you.

Edinburgh-based writer and editor Max Patrick Schlienger started wondering where the comma should be placed in the popular holiday song after he began humming the tune “one fateful evening in November”.

He told Storyful that the song has always been one of his favorites, and that he has performed it as a member of a men’s chorus while in university.

“I had always assumed that the title was correctly written as “God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen,” but I realized that I didn’t actually know for sure," he said.

Schlienger researched the history of the piece, and found himself toying with comma-focused lyrics that fit the tune.

It was then that he decided to create a “meta-analysis” of the song, the composing of which, he said, took about two weeks.

“I wrote a few different drafts of the lyrics, listened to several performances for inspiration, then set about arranging my own version,” Schlienger said.

He added that he has been really happy with the video’s success to date, and that if he had a wish for the holidays it would be for someone to “hear the song, give it some thought, then start to approach the written word with a heightened sense of wonder and curiosity,” before jokingly adding, “If that’s asking too much, then I’ll settle for having a teacher irritate their students with the piece.” Credit: @RamsesThePigeon via Storyful