I Believe in Father Christmas

Soul Music

BBC

Personal Journals, Music Commentary, Society & Culture, Music

4.7 • 772 Ratings

🗓️ 24 December 2022

⏱️ 28 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Some people say it's a protest song about the commercialisation of Christmas. Others that it's anti-religious. I Believe In Father Christmas is about neither, although lyricist Peter Sinfield concedes that it does include a touch of cynicism but says ultimately it's a song of joy and hope. When Greg Lake co-wrote it in 1975 he had embarked on a solo career away from Emerson Lake & Palmer. Those around him at the time, including songwriter Peter Sinfield and broadcaster Bob Harris, recall how repeating a simple acoustic guitar exercise led Greg Lake to this giant of a song that includes a full choir, orchestra, and an extract from Prokofiev to create an enduring Christmas anthem. For many people it's a comforting song conjuring images of nostalgic picture postcard Christmases of a childhood spent in the ambience of Christmas tree lights and candles with 'eyes full of tinsel and fire'. For others it's a cautionary reminder of the need to look beyond the materialism and commercialism to a quieter, more spiritual time.

Producer: Maggie Ayre

Transcript

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0:00.0	The Traitors is back and so is that mysterious cloaked figure with the familiar fringe.
0:06.7	Yeah, it's me.
0:07.9	And when you've watched Claudia in the castle, join me, Ed Gamble, for the official visualised companion podcast.
0:13.7	And remember, I'll be listening.
0:15.9	Okay?
0:16.7	No, seriously, I love it.
0:18.5	What a faithful.
0:19.7	We'll unpack betrayals and spill scandalous secrets with
0:22.7	celeb guests, traitors' legends, and murdered and banished players.
0:27.1	The Traitors Uncloaked.
0:28.4	Watch on EyePlayer, listen for more on BBC Sounds.
0:33.1	BBC Sounds, music, radio, podcasts.
0:37.5	Comment upon Christmas with our work, we see a whole lot of struggle.
0:42.6	You see people's stress levels start to really elevate.
0:46.2	You see a lot less rent being paid.
0:49.2	If there's mental health issues, then they're definitely being
0:53.1	exacerbated at that time of year.
0:55.5	There's addictions, usually, they start to ramp up around that time of year because
0:59.4	Christmas is such a focus on family and good times and material wealth. And so all of that
1:05.7	contributes to this persistent turmoil that you can kind of see building in people ahead of Christmas.
1:12.5	I'm Constantine Palmer. I live in St. John's Newfoundland. I'm a social worker here with the
1:18.4	provincial government and I'm also married to an Orthodox Christian priest. So we have a little
	...

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