I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday
"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 Electric Light Orchestra. 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.[1][2] The song was 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.
| "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 | |||
| Recorded | August 1973 | |||
| Studio | Phonogram Studios, Stanhope Place, Marble Arch, London | |||
| Genre | Glam rock, Christmas | |||
| Length | 4:38 | |||
| Label | Harvest, Warner Bros. Records | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Roy Wood | |||
| Producer(s) | Roy Wood | |||
| Wizzard singles chronology | ||||
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Wood sings lead vocals. The backing vocals for the single are by the Suedettes, augmented by the choir of Stockland Green School First Year.[3] 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.[4]
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.[4] In a UK television special on ITV in December 2012, the British public voted the song second (behind "Fairytale of New York") in The Nation's Favourite Christmas Song.[5]
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.
Music video
The video shows the band dressed up in winter-themed studio and are then joined by a group of children who play instruments and join in with the singing.
Re-releases
As it was kept from number one by Slade's "Merry Xmas Everybody" it was decided to re-release the single in 1981. It was then found that the original tapes had been lost, so the song was re-recorded by the band and a new choir, from Kempsey Primary School in Worcester, was used (they had appeared on Roy Wood's solo single "Green Glass Windows" earlier that year).[6] The single reached number 41 on the UK Singles Chart, and was released again in 1984, this time with an additional extended 12-inch version, getting as far as number 23.
As downloads became eligible for the weekly Top 75 from January 2007 onwards, and with exposure thanks to an Argos television advertisement, the song charted again in November and December 2007, this time reaching number 16. In the week of 13 December 2008, the song peaked at number 31. In the week of 14 December 2009, it peaked at number 45. In the week of 11 December 2010, it peaked at number 46. In the week of 12 December 2011, it peaked at number 28. It has appeared in the British top 40 every Christmas since, and in the top 20 every Christmas since 2017.
Other versions by Roy Wood
In 1995, Wood recorded a live version and released it as a single on his own independent record label Woody Recordings.[7] The only release from a shelved live album entitled Alive, the single, credited to Roy Wood Big Band charted at Number 59 in the UK Singles Chart.[8]
In 2000, Wood re-recorded the song again for Mike Batt's Dramatico Records, as part of a medley with Batt's song "Wombling Merry Christmas". This novelty record was released as "I Wish It Could Be a Wombling Christmas Everyday" by The Wombles with Roy Wood and reached number 22 in the UK Singles Chart.[9]
On 16 December 2020, Wood appeared with his band on Dave's Meet the Richardsons at Christmas, singing "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" in Jon Richardson and Lucy Beaumont's garden. This version, which also played out over the end credits, was credited to the Roy Wood Rock & Roll Band.[10][11][12]
Charts
| Year | Song | Chart position | |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK[13][14] | IRL | ||
| 1973 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday"[C] | 4 | 6 |
| 1981 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-issue) | 41 | 32 |
| 1984 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry)[E] | 23 | 36 |
| 2007 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry) | 16 | 42 |
| 2008 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry) | 31 | 42 |
| 2009 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry) | 45 | 23 |
| 2010 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry) | 46 | 28 |
| 2011 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry) | 28 | 30 |
| 2012 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry) | 29 | 37 |
| 2013 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry) | 31 | – |
| 2014 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry) | 35 | 68 |
| 2015 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry) | 27 | 49 |
| 2016 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry) | 23 | 60 |
| 2017 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry) | 15 | 29 [15] |
| 2018 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry) | 12 | ? |
| 2019 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry) | 10 | ? |
| 2020 | "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" (re-entry) | 13 | 44 |
| "–" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. | |||
- A^ Vocal backing by the Suedettes
- B^ Vocal backing by the Suedettes and the Beach Boys
- C^ Wizzard featuring vocal backing by the Suedettes plus the Stockland Green Bilateral School First Year Choir with additional noises by Miss Snob and Class 3C
- D^ Credited to Roy Wood's Wizzard
- E^ Re-entry of re-issue with 12" re-recording
Certifications and sales
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[16] | 2× Platinum | 1,200,000 |
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The Big Reunion version
| "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 | 16 December 2013 | |||
| Recorded | October–November 2013 | |||
| Studio | London, England | |||
| Genre | Christmas | |||
| Length | 4:48 | |||
| Label | Universal | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Roy Wood | |||
| Producer(s) | Cutfather | |||
| Five singles chronology | ||||
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| 911 singles chronology | ||||
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| Atomic Kitten singles chronology | ||||
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| B*Witched singles chronology | ||||
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| Blue singles chronology | ||||
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| Honeyz singles chronology | ||||
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| Liberty X singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" on YouTube | ||||
Background and release
On 23 October 2013, it was announced that the six 1990s and early 2000s pop bands who reunited for the ITV2 series The Big Reunion - Five, 911, Atomic Kitten, B*Witched, Blue, Honeyz and Liberty X - would be releasing a cover version of "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday", with all proceeds split between six Text Santa charities: Age UK, Barnardo's, BeatBullying, the British Heart Foundation, CLIC Sargent and Help the Hospices.[17] The recording of the charity single, which was produced by Danish producer and songwriter Cutfather (the Saturdays and One Direction), was the subject of a behind-the-scenes documentary broadcast on ITV2 on 12 December 2013.[17] The song was released on 16 December 2013 and charted for 1 week in the UK Top 75 at Number 21, with the release credited to The Big Reunion Cast 2013.[18]
Other cover versions
- All Star United in 1999, released on the BEC Records holiday compilation album Happy Christmas Vol. 2.
- A-Teens in 2001, as the B-side to their single "Heartbreak Lullaby", and later added to the Radio Disney Holiday Jams 2 compilation album in 2002.
- Tweenies in 2001, on their holiday album The Christmas Album.
- Girls Aloud in 2005, on their album Chemistry.
- Sarah Brightman in 2008, on her holiday album A Winter Symphony.
- Wilson Phillips in 2010, on their holiday album Christmas in Harmony (peaked at No. 14 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart). The official music video was uploaded to YouTube on 4 November 2010.[23]
- Leona Lewis in 2013, on her holiday album Christmas, with Love.
- Olly Murs in 2012, originally performed live for the BBC, and made commercially available on a 2013 Special Edition reissue of his album Right Place Right Time.
- Nick Lowe in 2013, on his holiday album Quality Street: A Seasonal Selection for All the Family and its live 2015 follow-up album The Quality Holiday Revue Live.
- Kylie Minogue in 2016, on her 2016 album Kylie Christmas: Snow Queen Edition, an expanded reissue of her 2015 album Kylie Christmas.
- Cheap Trick in 2017, on their holiday album Christmas Christmas, and with Roy Wood on lead vocals on a live recording released in 2018 for Record Store Day.
References
- The four consecutive weeks include one for which no new chart was published; when this occurs, it is the usual practice to repeat the previous week's chart to fill the gap. The same two records - "I Love You Love Me Love" and "You Won't Find Another Fool Like Me" - intervened between the Slade and Wizzard discs both before and after the "gap" week.
- Last.fm Wizzard - I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday
- It has been claimed that the choir's participation was arranged by pianist Bill Hunt, who may have been brother-in-law of the school's maths teacher. But a familial connection has been disputed, since Hunt's mother is claimed to have lived in nearby Queens Road, also within the ward of Stockland Green.
- Van der Kiste, John (2012). Roy Wood: The Move, Wizzard and beyond. KDP.
- "The Nation's Favourite Christmas Song". ITV. 22 December 2012.
- "Missing tapes and mystery choirs: The making of a Christmas classic". BBC. 25 December 2013.
- http://www.ftmusic.com/biogs/woody/wood_biog.html
- https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/14873/roy-wood/
- "i-wish-it-could-be-a-wombling-christmas | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12952388/?ref_=ttep_ep8
- https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/lifestyle/family/meet-richardsons-christmas-jon-richardson-and-lucy-beaumont-open-their-hebden-bridge-home-festive-special-johnny-vegas-3060830
- https://dave.uktv.co.uk/shows/meet-the-richardsons/
- Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 608. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- "Wizzard | full Official Chart history". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
- "IRMA – Irish Charts". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 30 December 2017.
- "British single certifications – Wizzard – I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
- "The Big Reunion cast announce Christmas single in aid of Text Santa". itv.com. 23 October 2013. Retrieved 24 October 2013.
- https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/31421/big-reunion-cast-2013/
- "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday". YouTube. Retrieved 4 December 2013.
- "Chart Track: Week 51, 2013". Irish Singles Chart.
- "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
- "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
- "I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day". YouTube.
External links
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