Music Monday: Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
Since today is the 34th anniversary of John Lennon’s death (at 10:50 pm ET tonight, to be precise), it seems appropriate for today’s Music Monday to feature one of the most beloved (and one of my favorite) of his post-Beatles tunes. The song has a clear anti-war message, and given the fact it was released in 1971, the main target was more than likely the Vietnam War, though it could apply to any conflict. Unlike other “protest” songs, however, there’s an optimism to the words: “A very merry Christmas, and a happy New Year; let’s hope it’s a good one without any fear… War is over if you want it.” Rather than venting about the atrocities of war, John and Yoko take the path of gentle exhortation: “For black and for white, for yellow and red ones, let’s stop all the fight.” It’s a perfect blend of a great tune and a simple message, just right for the Christmas season.
Here’s the song, courtesy of YouTube:
If you want to play along on your guitar, the chords are fairly straight forward. Simplified, the chords are: A, Bm, E, A, then D, Em, A, D. The chorus chords are: G, A, Em, G, D, E. If you want to play a little more closely to what’s happening on the record, here are some pictures to help you with the verses. The finger position circled in red is the one that moves. For example, in the first picture we have an A major chord where the note on the B-string is played first on the 2nd fret, then it’s open (there’s no little number “2”), then on the third fret (see the little number “3”), and finally back to the second fret (“4”):
“So this is Christmas…”
“And what have you done?” (Red circled note is first on the third fret, then open (no little “2”), then on the fifth, then back to the third. The line across the 2nd fret is a barre):
“Another year over…” (Red circled note first on the second fret, then on the first, then on the fourth fret of the D-string, then back to the first):
“And a new one just begun.” (Back to our original A chord):
“And so this is Christmas…” (No little “2” because the second note in the sequence is the open E-string):
“I hope you have fun…” (No little “1” because the first note in this sequence is the open E-string):
“The near and the dear ones…” (There’s no little “3” because that’s the open B-string):
“The old and the young.”
I hope that makes sense. Listen closely to the original recording and you should be able to figure it out. If you have any questions or comments, please use the “Comments”!
