I love how children are so easily infected with the Christmas spirit. My son has prepared for his Christmas play at school over the past couple of weeks, spontaneously bursting into song and looking forward to speaking his part at the microphone. He even made me download some songs, so we have been ‘jingle bell rocking’ and ‘Rudolph the red nose reindeering’ all week.
The music surrounding the festive season is so evocative and I’m sure everyone has their own personal favorite. I remember belting out Christmas carols at school in Australia and with my brother as we decorated our tree every year.
Christmas in Sicily for me is always tinged with homesickness, which is reflected by the Christmassy song I have going around in my head.
I have been listening to the Australian singer/songwriters and living legends Neil Finn and Paul Kelly’s album Goin’ Your Way which relives the best of their poetry through the decades.
Excuse me if I’m being self-indulgent but I wanted to share Paul Kelly’s song ‘How to make gravy,’ with you. It’s a bitter-sweet recollection of Christmas in Australia from an outsiders point of view, if you don’t know it I won’t ruin it for you, it’s a bit folky, country, blues and one hundred percent Australian, which seems to be what I need now.
Be sure to share what song is stuck in your head.
Happy festive listening.
Thank you for this, I hadn’t heard it before. Paul Kelly is such a good story teller through his songs!
I hope the homesickness fades.
Happy to share a little piece of Australia with everyone. Yes, Paul Kelly is really a poet I think.
Yes homesickness doesn’t hang around too long as long as you keep yourself busy, I hate to brood on it for too long, just had to promise myself a trip home.
An old man who lives above us has dementia and he whistles Song of Joy all day, every day, so that one is stuck in my head.
That’s funny. I’m still ‘jingle bell rocking’ thanks to my son …
Sniff. I understand the homesickness – I’m with you on that one. The Christmas song I’ve been singing full blast around our village is much less folky, and I’m kind of glad nobody here understands it. Meet The highly inappropriate Crimbo song by the inimitable Goodies: “Father Christmas do not touch me”.
OMG! I loved the Goodies, used to watch them with my brother all the time. Lucky no one understands the lyrics in your little village 😉
Also one of my favourite Christmas songs.
Thanks Pip, it’s pretty hard to go past Paul Kelly isn’t it …