♪♫ John Lennon -- So This Is Christmas (War Is Over) Happy New Year 2012! - Cover

MERRY CHRISTMAS! "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" is a song written by John Lennon, released as a single in 1971 by John Lennon, Yoko Ono, and the Plastic Ono Band on Apple Records, catalogue Apple 1842 in the US, and Apple R5970 in the UK. It peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #2 on the British singles chart. The song's first appearance on album was the 1975 compilation Shaved Fish. Although ostensibly a protest song about the Vietnam War, it has become a Christmas standard and has appeared on several Christmas albums.

The lyric is based on a campaign in late 1969 by Lennon and Ono, who rented billboards and posters in eleven cities around the world that read: "WAR IS OVER! (If You Want It) Happy Christmas from John and Yoko". The cities included New York, Los Angeles, Toronto, Rome, Athens, Amsterdam, Berlin, Paris, London, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Helsinki. At the time of the song's release, the US was deeply entrenched in the unpopular Vietnam War. The line "War is over, if you want it, war is over, now!", as sung by the background vocals, was taken directly from the billboards.

The record starts with a barely-audible whisper of Christmas greetings to their children: Yoko whispers "Happy Christmas, Kyoko", then John whispers "Happy Christmas, Julian". The lyric sheet from the 1982 release The John Lennon Collection erroneously gives this introduction as "Happy Christmas, Yoko. Happy Christmas, John".

It was recorded at Record Plant Studios in New York City in late October 1971, with the help of producer Phil Spector. It features heavily echoed vocals, and a sing-along chorus. The children singing in the background were from the Harlem Community Choir and are credited on the song's single. The lyrics were written by Lennon and Ono, and the melody and chord structure quote the folk standard known as "Stewball."[1] However, Lennon deviates harmonically in crucial ways from the original tune at the beginning of each major section, modulating through secondary keys before arriving back at the main key. This results in a more expansive harmonic progression, while it also lifts the melody higher each time, ultimately into the soprano range where it is passed upward to Yoko Ono and the children's chorus. The striking sense of forward movement and magnification with each modulation and registral change, neither of which is present in the original folk tune, is a key part of the song's expressive appeal. The single was released in the US in December of 1971, but the UK release was delayed until the following November due to a publishing dispute. The song was re-released in the UK on December 20, 1980, shortly after John Lennon's assassination on December 8, peaking at #2.

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[VoxMax1200]

You are great musician and So This Is Christmas / Happy Xmas (War Is Over) sound really great in your performance.

[AshAlmond]

@VoxMax1200 Thanks mate. I appreciate your comment

[ahsall10002]

Nice cover, my favorite Xmas song:)

[AshAlmond]

@ahsall10002 Thanks heaps. it's my fav xmas song too.

[sunshinedaydream6]

Great cover man :) Merry Christmas to you and your subscribers :D! You've inspired me to try and learn this for Xmas break :)

[AshAlmond]

@sunshinedaydream6 Thanks mate. Glad you like it. Have a very fun Xmas break with your guitar :-)

[045781]

Quote from Sean Lennon: "He was a counterculture revolutionary, and the government takes that kind of shit really seriously historically. He was dangerous to the government. If he had said, 'Bomb the White House tomorrow,' there would have been 10,000 people who would have done it. These pacifist revolutionaries are historically killed by the government. Anybody who thinks that Mark Chapman was just some crazy guy who killed my dad for his personal interests is insane, I think, or very naive"

[kikio43]

Wow thanks excelent cover

[nolagallagher]

Happy Christmas Ash. Great cover man....

[AshAlmond]

@alanpamung Peace man :-)

[AshAlmond]

@beatlesfollowers Thanks a lot

[beatlesfollowers]

Merry Christmas all Beatles followers around the world. This is a lovely cover. Congratulations