We used to sing a different version of Happy Birthday. It was set to the tune of Handel's Messiah (Hallelujah Chorus). We'd sing it acapella in 4 part harmony when I was in choir. Now, I'm wondering if the reason we did this in choir was to avoid the copyright issues with the more widely known Happy Birthday song. I asked some of the people who went to the high school if they remembered anything about it, and some of them remembered the custom, but no one seemed to remember where it started or whether this version was in the public domain. The version our choir did used the following lyrics: Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday, For this is your birthday today, (add person's name here)

and then went on to repeat the Happy Birthday part in place of the Hallelujah's. I was just wondering if anyone knew anything about the origins of this version of Happy Birthday. The tune would be in the public domain, but would the words be as well or is this version copyrighted or attributed to someone? Anyone have any further info on this particular version of Happy Birthday? Thanks.