Christmas Carols On Demand [AUDIO]

Who wouldn't want to start the morning with a classic Christmas carol, sung by college student cramming for finals?

Well, certainly not Riley & Scot!  After reading about  Dial a Carol early in the day, we decided to give them a call and have them serenade us with the song of our choice.  First up: "Holly Jolly Christmas".   Then "Up on the Housetop" in Round Two.  Here's the audio:

And the best part is this is a homegrown event, organized by students at the University of Illinois:

The program was started in 1960 by a former hall secretary, Betty Gordon, and a group of dorm residents. Last year, the student volunteers took more than 4,000 calls from people all over the world requesting "Jingle Bells," ''White Christmas" and "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer."

Phone lines are open 24 hours a day until just before midnight Wednesday. The number is 217-332-1882. When lines are busy, a recorded message greets callers with "Our first available caroler will be right with you."

The most popular song?

Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas is You" is so popular the students keep track with a "Mariah Meter." The count Monday morning: 107 requests.

I think we'll try to call back one more time on Wednesday morning.  Any requests?