HAPPY CHRISTMAS (WAR IS OVER)

So this is Christmas And what have you (1) _______ Another year over And a new one just (2)
_______ And so this is Christmas I hope you have fun The near and the dear one The old and
the (3) _______ A very Merry Christmas And a happy new year Let's hope it's a good one
Without any (4) _______ And so this is Christmas For (5) _______ and for strong For rich and
the (6) _______ ones The world is so wrong And so happy Christmas For black and for (7)
_______ For yellow and red one Let's stop all the (8) _______ A very Merry Christmas And a
happy new year Let's hope it's a good one Without any (9) _______ And so this is Christmas
And what have we (10) _______ Another year over A new one just (11) _______ And so happy
Christmas We hope you have fun The near and the dear one The old and the (12) ______ A
very Merry Christmas And a happy new year Let's hope it's a good one Without any (13)
_______ War is over, if you want it War is over now la, la, ah, ah Happy Christmas Happy
Christmas (happy Christmas) Happy Christmas (happy Christmas)

3 Reading (15’) – In pairs You are going to read an extract from a magazine article about Happy
Christmas (War is Over). Six sentences have been removed from the extract. Choose from
sentences A-G the one which fits each gap (1-6). There is one extra sentence that you don’t
need to use.

Happy Christmas (War is Over) "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" is a Christmas song released in
1971 as a single by John & Yoko/Plastic Ono Band with the Harlem Community Choir. The
lyrics, by John Lennon and Yoko Ono, are set to the traditional English ballad "Skewball". (0) A:
It was the seventh single release by Lennon outside his work with the Beatles. The song
reached number four in the UK, where its release was delayed until November 1972, and has
periodically reemerged on the UK Singles Chart, most notably after Lennon's death in
December 1980, when it peaked at number two. In a UK-wide poll in December 2012, it was
voted tenth on the ITV television special The Nation's Favourite Christmas Song. Also a protest
song against the Vietnam War, "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" has since become a Christmas
standard. (1) _______. Background (2) ________. The song's direct antecedent was an
international multimedia campaign launched by the couple in December 1969 – at the height
of the counterculture movement and its protests against America's involvement in the
Vietnam War – that primarily consisted of renting billboard space in 12 major cities around the
world for the display of black- and-white posters that declared "WAR IS OVER! If You Want It –
Happy Christmas from John & Yoko". Recognising the accessibility and popular appeal that
made his 1971 single "Imagine" a commercial success compared to the other songs he had
released up to that point, Lennon concluded: (3) _______ He conceived "Happy Xmas (War Is
Over)" as a means of elaborating upon the themes of social unity and peaceful change enacted
through personal accountability and empowerment that served as the basis of the earlier
billboard campaign, trying to convey optimism while avoiding the sentimentality that he felt
often characterised Christmas songs. From 1963 to 1969, the Beatles had issued special
recordings at Christmas directly to members of their fan club. (4) _______ "Happy Xmas (War
Is Over)" would be followed by George Harrison's "Ding Dong, Ding Dong" (1974), Paul
McCartney's "Wonderful Christmastime" (1979) and Ringo Starr's album I Wanna Be Santa
Claus (1999). Commercial reception On its US single debut in 1971, "Happy Xmas (War Is
Over)" did not meet with much success. (5) _______. The single subsequently re-appeared on
the Billboard Christmas charts in 1972, 1983, 1984 and 1985. The song appeared at number 32
on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary chart for the week ending 6 January 1996. "Happy
Xmas (War Is Over)" enjoyed immediate success in Britain when issued there in November
1972. The song peaked at number 4 on the UK Singles Chart and number 10 on the listings
compiled by Melody Maker. Since then, it has re- entered the UK Singles Chart nine more
times. (6) ________. The single peaked at number 2 – behind another reissued Lennon single,
"Imagine" – and remained on the chart for nine weeks. Between December 1972 and February
1973, the song entered the top ten in Australia, Belgium, Denmark, France, Ireland, the
Netherlands, Norway and Singapore. Source: Wikipedia (2019).

Missing sentences

A. It was the seventh single release by Lennon outside his work with the Beatles.

B. After the group disbanded in 1970, Lennon was the first former member to release an
original Christmas song.

C. This was due to the single's late release, which resulted in limited airplay before Christmas,
and a lack of promotion.

D. "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" was the culmination of more than two years of peace activism
undertaken by John Lennon and Yoko Ono.

E. "Now I understand what you have to do: Put your political message across with a little
honey."

F. A music video for "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" appeared on The John Lennon Video
Collection, released on VHS in 1993, corresponding to the 1989 reissue of The John Lennon
Collection.

G. It has been frequently recorded by other artists, appearing on compilation albums of

seasonal music, and named in polls as a holiday favourite.

H. The most notable of these instances occurred immediately following Lennon's death on 8
December 1980. KEY