If you want a tune, here's one I made up for it. Being thoroughly sick of all the stodgy, hymn-like carols, I thought I'd get back to their joyful dance roots, so I set this tune to a slip jig meter and cast it in Mixolydian mode. Hope you like it.


ABC (for a MIDI or PDF, feed this into the folkinfo.org ABC Converter):

X:1
T:The Animals' Carol
C:Text by Kenneth Grahame, 1908.
C:Music by Robert Wahl, 2011.
%%writehistory 1
S:Text from _The Wind in the Willows_ (p. 112), by Kenneth Grahame, 1908.
N:In the book, this song is sung by a group of field-mice on their yearly round
N:of caroling. Grahame titled it "Carol".
M:9/8
L:1/8
Q:3/8=92
K:GMix
%%text (G Mixolydian)
%%MIDI gchordon
"G"(GG)A B3 D2-D | "F"(FF)G "D"D3-Dz2 | "G"(B,C)D "F"F3 "C"C3 |
w: 1.~Vil-lag-ers all, this_ fros--ty tide,_ Let_ your doors swing
w: 2.~Here_ we stand in the cold and the sleet,_ Blow--ing fin-gers~and
w: 3.~For ere one half of the night_ was gone,_ Sud-den a star has
w: 4.~Good--man Jo-seph_ toiled through the snow~\-\-_ Saw_ the star o'er~a
w: 5.~And then they heard the_ an--gels tell,_ "Who were the first to
%
"Bb"(DG)F "G"G3-Gz2 | (B,C)D "Dm7"F3 "Am"A3 | "G"B2G "C"c3-cz2 |
w: op--en wide,_ Though wind may follow, and snow be-side,_
w: stamp--ing feet,_ Come_ from far a-way~you to greet~\-\-_
w: led_ us on,_ Rain--ing bliss and ben-i-son~\-\-_
w: sta--ble low;_ Ma-ry she might not fur-ther go?~\-\-_
w: cry_ No-well?_ An-i-mals all, as it be-fell,_
%
"G"ddc B3 (G2G) | "C"(EE)G "Am"(C3 "Bb"D3) | "G"(GG)A B3 "F"d2c |
w: Yet draw us in by your fire_ to bide;_ Joy shall be yours in the
w: You by the fire and_ we in the street~\-\-_ Bid-ding you joy in the
w: Bliss_ to-mor-row and more_ a-non,_ Joy_ for eve-ry_
w: Wel--come thatch, and_ lit-ter be-low!_ Joy_ was hers in the
w: In_ the sta-ble where they_ did dwell!_ Joy shall be theirs in the
%
"G"(BAG) "C"c3-cz2 | "D"(dd)D "C"E2G c2B | "F"(AGF) "G"G3-Gz2 ||
w: morn---ing!_ Joy shall be yours_ in the morn---ing!_
w: morn---ing!_ Bid-ding you joy_ in the morn---ing!_
w: morn---ing!_ Joy_ for eve--ry_ morn---ing!_
w: morn---ing!_ Joy_ was hers_ in the morn---ing!_
w: morn---ing!_ Joy shall be theirs_ in the morn---ing!"_
%
%%vskip .25in
%%center Music copyright \251 2011 by Robert Wahl. All rights reserved.
%
%%newpage
%%vskip .75in
%%leftmargin 2.75in
%%begintext

1. Villagers all, this frosty tide,
Let your doors swing open wide,
Though wind may follow, and snow beside,
Yet draw us in by your fire to bide;
      Joy shall be yours in the morning! [2x]

2. Here we stand in the cold and the sleet,
Blowing fingers and stamping feet,
Come from far away you to greet?-
You by the fire and we in the street--
      Bidding you joy in the morning!

3. For ere one half of the night was gone,
Sudden a star has led us on,
Raining bliss and benison?-
Bliss to-morrow and more anon,
      Joy for every morningl

4. Goodman Joseph toiled through the snow?-
Saw the star o'er a stable low;
Mary she might not further go?-
Welcome thatch, and litter below!
      Joy was hers in the morning!

5. And then they heard the angels tell
'Who were the first to cry Nowell?
Animals all, as it befell,
In the stable where they did dwell!
      Joy shall be theirs in the morning!'
%%endtext
%%vskip .5in
%%leftmargin 1.25in


Search around also for Kenneth MacKinnon's setting, a variant of the tune "Cookham Dene" "adapted from 'St. George's Windsor' (George Elvey, 1816-93)". I found an ABC of it somewhere.