1972-1976; The Golden Age of Christmas songs?

 

The Golden Age of the Christmas Single

The Christmas single has a long and chequered history; including some of the best, and worst, recordings ever released. Semi-religious offerings rub shoulders with lewd bad taste songs and megastars and one-hit wonders jostle for position. Of the songs that retain their position on the playlists, some go back a long, long way; I Saw Mummy Kissing Santa, It’s Beginning To Look a Lot Like Christmas and of course White Christmas date from the 1950’s, whilst 1960’s artists such as the Ronettes and the Beach Boys successfully released Christmas offerings. Elvis Presley released entire albums of Christmas songs, which were enhanced by his voice and his ability to project sentimentality with absolute sincerity. Perhaps only Michael Buble has done as well since.

But in recent years, certainly since the millennium, the quality, if not the quantity, has definitely fallen off. The hi-jacking of the Christmas number one slot by the X-Factor winners contributed to this. Why even attempt to compete with that juggernaut? But possibly today’s artists are finding that coming up with a Christmas hit is harder than it looks. In 2017 Sia only managed to reach no 39 on the chart with Santa is coming for us, whilst Arianna Grande only reached 29 with Santa tell me in 2014.

What makes a great Christmas song? The status of the artist is no guarantee; Its Christmas (baby please come home) is on very few Youtube playlists. Do you even recall that the artists are U2? Similarly Santa Claus Is Coming To Town is on few people’s lists of favourite Bruce Springsteen songs. You can identify some musical commonplaces; sleigh bells, an uptempo beat, a catchy chorus. Lyrically, songs that evoke the atmosphere and anticipation of Christmas have a lasting appeal, but there is a strong sub-genre of sad Christmas songs that bemoan the absence of a lost love. Blue Christmas, Last Christmas, Lonely this Christmas all represent this group.

So rather than waste time trying to define the undefinable (no sure-fire song-writing formula would ever come up with a song that starts: “it was Christmas Eve babe, in the drunk tank) I want to celebrate the classics that burst forth, like Athena from the head of Zeus, in the period 1972 to 1976. Why these years? Well, I was eleven in ’72 and fifteen in ’76, so you can argue those are the years of peak susceptibility to these songs. But they are also the years that brought some of the most enduring perennials that still, nigh on fifty years on, are still played, sung and drunkenly danced to. So here goes.

1972
We start with the first Christmas song I ever bought; Happy Christmas (war is over) by John Lennon and Yoko Ono. Reaching number 4 in December ’72, this song complements Imagine as an exemplar of John and Yoko’s world view. Superficially listened to it can seem rather trite, Merry, Merry Christmas, and a happy New Year/Let’s hope it’s a good one, without any fear. Simply platitudes, sneered some. But even at the age of eleven, I heard it differently. To me, Lennon was saying look, war won’t be over, but we need to live in hope, because without hope we are lost. Of course, he wrapped this message up with Christmas Bells and a children’s choir to sing the catchy chorus. But is must have something, because today’s teenagers can sing along to this song.

1972 also gave us Gaudete by Steeleye Span. Sung in Latin by a folk group, it may seem an unlikely Christmas hit, but it is typical of the eclectic nature of the charts in the 1970’s that there was a place for it. The olde English male folk harmonies married perfectly with the ethereal purity of lead singer Maddy Prior’s voice to make a wonderful sound that referenced the message of Christmas: Christus es natus, ex maria virginae Gaudete (Christ is born of Mary the virgin, worship him).

1973

Next is Slade; Merry Xmas Everybody (a.k.a Noddy Holder’s pension plan) which dominated the chart of 1973. This is the quintesssential rowdy sing-along which, more than any other, encapsulates our experience of the British family Christmas: Does your granny always tell you that the old songs are the best, then she’s up and rock and rolling with the rest?

There’s no mystery to this song, it is quite simply joyous, from the first line; Are you hanging up your stockings on the wall? The clever hint of naughtiness; what will your daddy do when he sees your mummy kissing santa? to that genius band reference; do you ride on down the hillside in a buggy you have made/when you land upon your head then you’ve been Slade.

And best of all, even those of us, like me, who can’t sing a note, can shout along to this. On this song, the band are in your living room, having Christmas alongside you. It’s quite simply irresistible!

From the same year comes Wizzard’s contribution. Like ELO’s Jeff Lynn, Roy Wood came out of the Move, and always wanted to be a chart act. They had other hits (Ball Park Incident is fabulous) but I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day is the song they are remembered for. Like Lennon, it employs bells and a kids choir, all rolled up with the bands signature saxophone breaks. When the Snowman brings the snow- bang, you’re there; winter, Christmas, fantasy. The chorus is slightly more musical than Slade’s and when the kids come in with it at the end it just finishes you off. A classic indeed.

Also released for the first time in this year was Step into Christmas, by Elton John. It did better chart wise in subsequent years; but is a golden era example of an A list artist getting it right by putting just as much effort into it as any other song. We can watch the snow fall, for ever and ever…. What’s not to love?

1974

Moving on a year we have Mud, with Lonely This Christmas, their homage to Elvis. As already discussed, there is a place for the sad song at Christmas; It’ll be lonely this Christmas, without you to hold, and Les Gray milks it for all it’s worth, even down to the Elvis style spoken words; Merry Christmas darling, wherever you are. Number one for four weeks, it shares with Slade and Wizzard Top of the Pops appearances looking ridiculous, in Mud’s case wearing Christmas tree baubles as earrings. One to fall back on when your love life’s gone south, it remains a favourite. Speaking of 1974, an honourable mention here for Showaddywaddy’s Mr Christmas by the way.

1975

By 1975 we’d moved on from Glam Rock but the Christmas songs just kept on coming. Chris De Burgh, known for off the wall songs like Spanish Train, whose protagonist plays cards with the devil, released A Spaceman came Travelling, which riffed on the was God an alien idea popularised at that time by Erik Von Daniken. A gentle, reflective song, it represents it’s year very well. With a nah, nah, nah, nah chorus, it retained some singability too. The same year also gave us Mike Oldfield’s In Dulce Jubilo, an instrumental that throws the sink at us bells wise and is instantly hummable. It simply yells Christmas and has a jaunty tune that makes you feel good.

1976

And so to 1976. At the end of our period we have Johnny Mathis, the heir to the likes of Bing Crosby and Perry Como, with When a Child is Born, reminding us that Christmas is at heart a religious festival. Mathis pulls off the spoken section at least as well as Les Gray and you’d have to have a heart of stone not to feel a warm glow after listening to him deliver this.

So for me, these years are the golden age of Christmas songs, when you could be sure each Christmas would throw up a new classic. These songs have stood the test of time because we entwine with the memories of Christmas past, but also because, for whatever reason, the muse of Christmas music was hanging around street corners, in the Black Country and other places, just waiting to inspire any artist she could.

There have been great ones since; Wham, Mariah Carey, the Pogues. But somehow, if you asked people to name a top ten, Slade Wizzard and John Lennon, it’s a fairly safe bet, would be in there. 

Links:

Happy Christmas (War is over)

Gaudete: Steeleye Span

A Spaceman came travelling

In Dulce Jubilo

(You don't need a link to Slade and Wizzard!)

His Dark Materials, season two finale, review Part A

 

In a previous post I previewed series two of His Dark Materials. Amongst other things, I commented that ‘I think that Dafne Keen is going to grow into the Lyra role in series two. Initially in series one she was restrained and less charismatic than you might have expected, but she gradually came into her own and I think she is going to be spectacular in this series,as is Amir Wilson as Will’.

I think that was a fairly accurate prediction; both actors have really come alive in this series, both as individuals and in partnership. Dafne conveys Lyra’s ability to be deceitful to get her way without in any way lessening our empathy with her whilst Will gradually shows he is getting her measure. Their increasing closeness is deftly portrayed and they each take the lead when they need to.

The series also makes clearer than the book the extent to which the world containing Cittagazze is a hinge world, a stepping stone between Lyra’s Oxford and Will’s, which is nonetheless extremely dangerous. Talking of extremely dangerous, the undoubtedly star of this series is Ruth Wilson as Mrs Coulter, as complex a character as any we have ever seen in a drama. Marisa is capable of extreme cruelty, subtle manipulation of the men around her and utter ruthlessness, which is redeemed by her bravery, her charisma and her occasional vulnerability where Lyra is concerned.

Although much of the series has dwelt on the partnership she strikes up with Lord Boreal the penultimate episode came back to her and Lyra in stunning fashion. The scene in which Lyra paralyzes Marisa as Pantalaimon savages the monkey demon was electrifying- Lyra and Pan clearly showing their symbiotic connection at this climactic moment when she finally shows herself the equal of her mother.

It is a tribute to Ruth Wilson that when she dispatches Boreal you can only applaud her, she is utterly hypnotic in this role. I have been following the twitter conversations each week and have been struck by how much of a following she has amongst young gay women .Equally, those same fans are equally taken with Mary Malone, an interesting insight into how the opposite extremes of the female spectrum can be equally beguiling. Mary and Marisa are diametric opposites who nonetheless manage to have so much in common, and of course they are linked by love for Lyra.

The finale promises to be spectacular- I will comment on it later…………