Talk:Silent Night

On record charts

Several recordings of "Silent Night" have reached the record charts in various countries. These include:

• 1969–1979: Percy Sledge No. 10 on the Dutch Charts
• 1972–1973: Tom Tomson No. 21 on the Belgium Ultratop Flanders chart and No. 10 on its Wallonia chart
• 1975–1976: The Cats No. 10 on the Dutch Charts
• 1991–1992: Sinéad O'Connor No. 71 on the Dutch Charts
• 2007–2008: Josh Groban No. 5 on the Norwegian Charts and No. 19 on the U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary Chart
• 2008: Glasvegas No. 42 on the Swedish Charts
• 2009: Mariah Carey No. 67 on the U.S. Billboard Digital Song Sales Chart
• 2013–2014: Elvis Presley No. 120 on the French Charts
• 2013–2014: Nat King Cole No. 125 on the French Charts

Source challenge

I have long challenged this one single source for this article: . There are no other sources to back such claims as: (source) "...the melody had been assumed to be the work of Haydn, Mozart or Beethoven at various times and these thoughts persisted even into the twentieth century." This does not align with the hundreds of sheet music publications dating as far back as the 19th Century and early 20th Century that bear the name F. Gruber and Franz Gruber both in America and Europe. I cannot find any source or evidence (publication / sheet music / hymnals with date 1818) that states authorship for any of the named composers. Furthermore, this statement within the article: "... although Gruber was known to be the composer, many people assumed the melody was composed by a more famous composer, and it was variously attributed to Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven or Schubert" doesn't make sense. It is confusing and contradictory. It should be removed until other sources can back the claim. Maineartists (talk) 14:30, 4 December 2025 (UTC)

Further research: most present day articles that claim "the melody had been assumed to be the work of Haydn, Mozart or Beethoven" cite Wikipedia as their source; practically verbatim. There are no other historic sources that back this claim. In addition, the section regarding Mohr's authorship confuses Gruber's authorship. "However, a manuscript was discovered in 1995 in Mohr's handwriting and dated by researchers as c. 1820. It states that Mohr wrote the words in 1816 when he was assigned to a pilgrim church in Mariapfarr, Austria, and shows that the music was composed by Gruber in 1818." No one ever doubted this. Again, there are published sheet music and hymnals dating as far back as the 19th and early 20th century that state Gruber as the composer and the date 1818. As well, I can find absolutely no source online or printed that backs the claim that "Haydn, Beethoven, Mozart, or ..." was thought to have written "Silent Night". This "newly discovered" manuscript of 1995 simply aided in proving Mohr's authorship, not Gruber's. 1916 sheet music: . This published sheet music dated 1924 states: GERMAN WORDS BY JOSEPH MOHR and MUSIC BY FRANZ GRUBER: . There are countless other publications that can be found online to debunk this claim within the article. Even on eBay: by typing in "Silent Night Sheet Music Mohr" one renders published sheet music throughout the 20th century decades long before 1995 with the name JOSEPH MOHR; let alone FRANZ GRUBER. The content presently within this article, based on "The controversy was put to rest in 1994", is simply not correct or factual; and is the only source claiming it to be true. I am removing it until more substantial sources can be found to back this claim; and not just sources that cite WP or the source itself. Maineartists (talk) 17:10, 5 December 2025 (UTC)