Darlene Love - "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)"

John Lennon & Yoko Ono: vocals
John Lennon; guitar
Klaus Voormann: bass
Hugh McCracken: guitar
Nicky Hopkins: piano, chimes
The Harlem Community Choir: vocals

Produced by John & Yoko & Phil Spector
Recorded at The Record Plant, New York, 28th October 1971
"Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" is a song written by John Lennon and Yoko Ono and released in 1971 as a single by John & Yoko/Plastic Ono Band with the Harlem Community Choir. The song did not chart in the U.S. but reached #4 on the British singles chart (where release was delayed until 1972). Ostensibly a protest song about the Vietnam War, it has become a Christmas standard and has appeared on several Christmas albums.

The lyric is based on a campaign in late 1969 by Lennon and Ono, who rented billboards and posters in eleven major cities around the world that read: "WAR IS OVER! (If You Want It) Happy Christmas from John and Yoko". In 1971, the US was deeply entrenched in the unpopular Vietnam War. The line "War is over, if you want it, war is over, now!", as sung by the background vocals, was taken directly from the billboards.

Vocals: John Lennon, Yoko Ono and the Harlem Community Choir
Guitar and bass guitar: Hugh McCracken, Chris Osborn, Teddy Irwin, Stuart Scharf
Keyboards, chimes and glockenspiel: Nicky Hopkins, Yoko Ono
Drums and sleigh bells: Jim Keltner



John & Yoko, The Plastic Ono Band with the Harlem Community Choir - Happy Xmas (War Is Over)

Kelly Clarkson - Underneath The Tree COVER

Carol of the bells

"Sleigh Ride" by Leroy Anderson
The Northshore Concert Band
John P. Paynter, conductor

Sleigh Ride

Outlaw's Last Stand
Lyrics By: Thomas W. Peterson AKA RedHeart 
©COPYRIGHT 12–1-2025 All Rights Reserved © 


[Intro: Gritty electric guitar riff, steady train-beat drums kick in]

[Verse 1]
Once I rode the wild roads
Once I chased the sun
But now the shadows linger
And the battles weigh a ton

[Chorus]
THAT’S WHEN I RAISE MY BOTTLE!
THAT’S WHEN THE PAST COMES BACK TO STAY!
These sorry eyes don’t beg—they just watch another day burn away

[Verse 2]
The neon sign flickers
On a name I used to know
My boots track dust and whiskey
Where the good times used to go

[Chorus]
THAT’S WHEN I RAISE MY BOTTLE!
THAT’S WHEN THE PAST COMES BACK TO STAY!
These sorry eyes don’t beg—they just watch another day burn away

[Inst: Raw Telecaster solo over driving train beat, slight amp grit]

[Bridge]
You can call it ruin
Call it sin or shame
But I wore this coat of silence
Long before you knew my name

[Guitar Solo: Aggressive bends and gritty sustain, drums lock tight]

[Chorus]
THAT’S WHEN I RAISE MY BOTTLE!
THAT’S WHEN THE PAST COMES BACK TO STAY!
These sorry eyes don’t beg—they just watch another day burn away

[Outro: Drums fade slowly, guitar plays final unresolved riff, amp hum lingers]
Sorry eyes...
Yeah... still lookin’...

Outlaw Country, gritty electric guitar, steady train-beat drums, soulful tone, defiant, authentic, moderate groove, rough-edged male vocals, raw production

John & Yoko, The Plastic Ono Band with the Harlem Community Choir - Happy Xmas (War Is Over)

Yoko Ono

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