The iconic Pogues song ‘Fairytale of New York’ “goes against everything” to do with Christmas – which is why it’s so beloved, according to one musical expert.
98FM’s Ciaran O’Connor sat down with The Anton Savage Show to break down the anatomy of a Christmas chart topper.
When asked about his favourite Christmas song, Ciaran said it “had to be” ‘Fairytale of New York’ by the Pogues.
“It is the ultimate Christmas song in my mind,” he said.
“But I think it’s not really a Christmas song – it goes against everything [Christmassy].
“That goes back to the whole commercial thing; it’s not all about fluffy reindeers and lovely snow.
“It’s the truth about Christmas... that’s why people appreciate this song.”
The original female singer
Ciaran pointed out the Pogues classic is the most beloved Christmas song in Ireland and the most played Christmas song of the 21st century – although it went through a “funny recording process”.
“Cait O’Riordan, the bassist in the Pogues, sang on the first version of the song,” he explained.
The song was written for O’Riordan to sing alongside the late Shane MacGowan – until the wife of the song’s producer, Kirsty MacColl, had a go at the song.
“Steve Lillywhite, who was Kirsty’s husband, well the story goes they hopped into their home studio with all the kids running around, they recorded this absolute ballad and the band said, ‘Sorry Cait, you’re out’,” Ciaran said.
“If you go onto YouTube and search ‘Fairytale in New York demo one’ or ‘demo two’, you will hear Cait O’Riordan singing.”
The Christmas number one
As the creator of The Story of the Christmas Number One, Ciaran knows more than most about what makes a song a true Christmas chart topper. The first thing is the song doesn’t actually need to top the charts.
“It’s kind of like X Factor,” he said. “The theory that the number one winner never does that well and it’s the number two or three who take over the world.
“A lot of Christmas songs were never number one, but they’re the ones that are on the compilations year in and year out that are the chart toppers.”
Mariah Carey
‘All I Want for Christmas is You’, for example, did not reach number one upon its release in 1994.
“It was beat by East 17’s ‘Stay Another Day’,” Ciaran explained.
Now, however, Mariah Carey is “the queen of Christmas” and has built a legacy off one simple carol.
“It took 15 minutes to writ ethe melody, you get Mariah in and suddenly it becomes the commercially best Christmas song in the world,” Ciaran said.
By December 2021, the song achieved 1.4 billion streams and 3.7 downloads.
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