The 19th-century poet Philips Brooks was inspired on his journey to the Holy Land when he traveled to the town of Bethlehem one Christmas Eve. It became the basis of his famous poem O Little Town of Bethlehem for which Lloyd Larson has crafted a new melody in this charming choral anthem. The text also draws from William Neidlinger's The Birthday of a King. This setting comes from Lloyd's cantata "Were You There on That Christmas Night?"