"I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" | ||||
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Single by Wizzard | ||||
B-side | "Rob Roy's Nightmare (A Bit More H.A.)" | |||
Released | December 1973 | |||
Format | 7" single | |||
Recorded | August 1973, Phonogram Studios, Stanhope Place, Marble Arch, London | |||
Genre | Glam rock, Christmas | |||
Length | 4:48 | |||
Label | Harvest, Warner Bros. Records | |||
Writer(s) | Roy Wood | |||
Producer(s) | Roy Wood | |||
Wizzard singles chronology | ||||
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"I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Single by Five, 911, Atomic Kitten, B*Witched, Blue, Honeyz and Liberty X | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Released | 15 December 2013 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Format | Digital download | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Recorded | 2013 London, England |
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Genre | Christmas | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Length | 4:48 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Label | Universal | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Writer(s) | Roy Wood | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Producer(s) | Cutfather | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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"I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" is a Christmas song recorded by British glam rock band Wizzard. It was first released in December 1973 and, as with most Wizzard songs, was written and produced by the band's frontman Roy Wood — formerly of The Move and a founding member of ELO. Despite the song's strong, long-lasting popularity, it has reached no higher than number four on the UK Singles Chart, a position it occupied for four consecutive weeks from December 1973 to January 1974. The song was famously beaten to the 1973 Christmas Number 1 spot by Slade's "Merry Xmas Everybody" which remained at the top of the charts for five weeks, from December 1973 to January 1974.
Roy Wood sings lead vocals. The backing vocals for the single are by "The Suedettes", augmented by the choir of First Year. The original sleeve of the single credits "Miss Snob and Class 3C" with "Additional noises". The basic track for the single was recorded in August 1973, so to create a wintry feeling engineer Steve Brown decorated the studio with Christmas decorations and turned the air conditioning down to its coldest setting. Wood wore a woollen hat found in lost property. The schoolchildren were brought down from the Midlands to London by bus during the autumn half-term to add their contributions.
At the time of the single's release, Wizzard's contract with EMI was close to expiration. Promotional copies were pressed by Warner Brothers, with whom the band had just signed for future releases. Only then was it discovered that EMI were legally entitled to the track after all, so the Warner Bros. Records pressings were halted and the record appeared on the Harvest label, but with the same picture sleeve.
Although Wood had arranged for the members of the Stockland Green School choir to sing at the Top of the Pops television recording, their place was taken by children provided by a local London stage school.