I Believe in Father Christmas
| "I Believe In Father Christmas" | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Single by Greg Lake | |
| from the album Works Volume 2 | |
| B-side | "Humbug" |
| Released | November 1975 |
| Format | 7" |
| Recorded | 1974 |
| Length | 3:31 |
| Label | Manticore |
| Writer(s) | Greg Lake, Peter Sinfield |
| Producer(s) | Greg Lake, Peter Sinfield |
"I Believe in Father Christmas" is a song by English musician Greg Lake with lyrics by Peter Sinfield. Although it is often categorised as a Christmas song, this was not Lake's intention. He said that he wrote the song in protest at the commercialisation of Christmas. Sinfield, however, said that the words are about a loss of innocence and childhood belief. Released in 1975, the song reached number two on the UK Singles Chart.
Lake wrote the song at his West London home, after tuning the bottom string of his guitar from E down to D. While the song is against the commercialisation of Christmas, it has often been misinterpreted as an anti-religious song and, because of this, Lake was surprised at its success. He explained in a Mojo magazine interview:
"I find it appalling when people say it's politically incorrect to talk about Christmas, you've got to talk about 'The Holiday Season'. Christmas was a time of family warmth and love. There was a feeling of forgiveness, acceptance. And I do believe in Father Christmas."
The instrumental riff between verses comes from the "Troika" portion of Sergei Prokofiev's Lieutenant Kijé Suite, written for the 1934 Soviet film Lieutenant Kijé; this was added at the suggestion of Keith Emerson (an adaptation of the same song was used on Emerson's later Christmas album). Sinfield described the song as "a picture-postcard Christmas, with morbid edges."
The song was recorded by Lake in 1974 and released separately from ELP in 1975, reaching number two in the UK Singles Chart. It was kept from number one by Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody". Lake has commented: "I got beaten by one of the greatest records ever made. I would’ve been pissed off if I’d been beaten by Cliff (Richard)." However, orchestrator Godfrey Salmon was less charitable: "I was surprised the single wasn’t more successful. I thought 'Bohemian Rhapsody' was rubbish, and still do. When it got to No 1 before we’d even brought ours out, I thought it would be long gone by Christmas. How wrong can you get?" The record was rereleased in 1984 and 1986 making 84 and 98 respectively in the UK Singles Chart.
...
Wikipedia