Xmas with Simon

Lyrics

Do not fret, rest your head, Jesus had no fear 
Do not fret, rest your head, Christmas time is here 
Castle in the snow 
Southern white sign 
No explanation for the lights 
Empires were tumbling 
Pity the people in the desert, Jesus did 
Pity the people who had too much dessert 
Jesus 
Big old nice old house 
It's Christmas 
In old English village 
Jesus 
It's that time again 
It's Christmas 
And those films again 
Born in a barn, surrounded by animals 
No set amount to the number of diseases 
Died at the age of thirty-three, which is as good a time as any 
White outside 
Bowl of light glows 
Slow march of the humble 
Wrong shall fail and the right prevail 
Jesus 
Big old nice old house 
It's Christmas 
In old English village 
Jesus 
It's that time again 
It's Christmas 
And those films again 
Do not fret, rest your head, Jesus had no fear 
Do not fret, save your breath, Christmas time is here 
Jesus 
Big old nice old house in old English village 
With candles in it 
Jesus 
It's that time again 
And those films again 
Jesus 
It's Christmas 
House of gold 
Castle in the snow 
Jesus 
It's Christmas 
Jesus 
It's Christmas 

Christmas time is here
And the [ ] fail
And the right prevail
Pity the people in the desert, Jesus did
Pity the people who had too much dessert, Jesus woulda
House of gold
No set amount to the number of diseases
Surrounded by animals
Jesus, Christmas, iron cross
And do not fret, rest your head, save up for your [ ]
[ ]
Christmas time is ...
[ ]
No explanation for the lights
Christmas country
Save your breath, do not fret [ ]
[ ] Jesus had no fear
Christmas time is here
White outside
Jesus had no fear
Christmas time is here
Telegram I send that Jesus
[ ]
Christmas time is here
No explanation for the lights
It was getting curiouser and curiouser
No set amount to the number of diseases
The Romans ate their pasta
Born in a barn, surrounded by animals, Jesus
Died at thirty-three, a good age as any
A lot of, er, queues in the supermarket
Christmas
Out of the air, big nice old house in old English village, with candles in it
It's Christmas
It's that time again, and them films again
The snow makes my ears treble sized
They go ho ho ho

Commentary

< Post in progress >

Footnotes

1. @user Rob, at the original doomby edition of The Annotated Fall brilliantly spotted that this line is borrowed from the song “Innocent Little Doggy” (1968) by George “Bongo Joe” Coleman (1923 – 1999).
   
   See YouTube. ↩︎
2. The ultimate source of this is the poem “Christmas Bells” (1863) by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882):
   
   Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
   ‘God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
       The Wrong shall fail,
       The Right prevail,
   With peace on earth, good-will to men.’
   
   Source: Scottish Poetry Library: ‘Christmas Bells’ by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
   
   The poem formed the basis of the Christmas carol, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day” (see Wikipedia), a version of which was recorded by Johnny Cash for his album The Christmas Spirit, released in November 1963 just in time for the Christmas market. There’s also a cover of “Blue Christmas” on the album. It’s probable that MES knew the Johnny Cash version, since he was a fan of Cash, but the other versions are not so obscure either. ↩︎

Sources / Links

• The Annotated Fall: “Xmas With Simon” [Archived]
• Scottish Poetry Library: ‘Christmas Bells’ by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
• Smith, Mark E. with Austin Collings (2009). Renegade: The Lives and Tales of Mark E. Smith. London: Penguin. (Originally published by Viking, 2008). [Available online in the Internet Archive]
• The Track Record: “Christmastide”
• The Track Record: “Xmas with Simon”
• Wikipedia: The Christmas Spirit
• Wikipedia: “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day”
• Wolstencroft, Simon (2014). You Can Drum But You Can’t Hide. London: Strata Books.