Merry Xmas Everybody
Slade
Everything arrives at once — a thunderclap drumbeat, distorted guitar that sounds like it's being played inside a tin shed, and Noddy Holder's voice, which was apparently designed in a factory that made foghorns and school bells. Slade's 1973 glam-stomp is the sonic equivalent of someone bursting through a door unannounced and immediately demanding everyone have a good time. The piano clangs, the handclaps are sloppy and communal, and the whole track has the texture of a pub singalong that has gone on slightly too long — which is precisely its genius. There is no sophistication here, and it doesn't want any. This song belongs to the British working-class Christmas: the tinsel-draped living room, the relatives who've had a few, the television turned down because someone started singing. Holder's delivery never drops below a controlled shout; he sounds genuinely delighted by everything, including the noise he's making. Unlike most Christmas songs, which reach for sentiment or magic, this one reaches for sheer physical volume as its primary emotional gesture. It is the musical equivalent of a clap on the back hard enough to spill your drink. You don't listen to it so much as survive it.
fast
1970s
raw, noisy, communal
British glam rock, working-class pub culture
Rock, Glam Rock. Glam Stomp. euphoric, boisterous. Detonates immediately at full communal energy and never relents — no arc, just a sustained physical demand that everyone join in.. energy 9. fast. danceability 7. valence 10. vocals: powerful raspy male shout, exuberant and unrestrained, foghorn delivery. production: distorted guitar, clanging piano, sloppy handclaps, relentless rhythm section. texture: raw, noisy, communal. acousticness 2. era: 1970s. British glam rock, working-class pub culture. A tinsel-draped living room with relatives who've had a few, somebody singing along whether or not they know the words.