Tag Archives: Antiwar

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HOLIDAY SONG COUNTDOWN: HAPPY XMAS (WAR IS OVER) – 23 DAYS UNTIL CHRISTMAS

This song came out of nowhere in the holiday season of 1971.

It was recorded in October and released a few weeks before Christmas. We all knew that John and Yoko were on a peace-and-love mission, but this expressed it in holiday form.

“Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” certainly feels like a song of its time – a protest against the Vietnam War, which Nixon was dragging out to make it seem he was a peacemaker by the ’72 election.

But it also hasn’t dated. Its message remains strong today – think Venezuela, Ukraine and Gaza instead of Vietnam. And it counters the message of a warmongering White House run by a insecure lout.

It’s also good music. The melody is catchy and memorable.

To prove the point, instead of the original, here’s an instrumental version by cellist Yo-Yo Ma and ukelele player Jake Shimabukuro.

https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=A-h6V8J9ARE

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HOLIDAY SONG COUNTDOWN – DEC. 15

“DO YOU HEAR WHAT I HEAR?” – 10 DAYS UNTIL CHRISTMAS

Peace is a common theme of the holiday season. But it seems unusual that holiday songs would make a political statement about it.

Introducing “Do You Hear What I Hear?”

Yeah, I know, it doesn’t seem like it has a message other than the more obvious one about the holiday. The night wind. The little lamb. The shepherd boy. And so on.

But the song was written by a married couple in 1962 as the Cuban Missile Crisis was unfolding. Those of us old enough remember that as a very scary moment in our lives. The composers were scared, too, and they wrote this as a plea to end the tension.

Bing Crosby popularized the song. It was originally recorded by the Harry Simeone Chorale of “The Little Drummer Boy” fame. Here is their version:

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