So, I thought I would post the lyrics of the two original Christmas songs from the record, as well as the lyrics I sang for "Fairytale of New York," since I changed them somewhat from the original. I will also discuss why I changed them. Let's get into that first.


In this classic Pogues song, I replaced a verse that has drawn much controversy over the years. The original line goes:

Youre a bum.
Youre a punk.
Youre an old slut on junk,
Lying there almost dead
on a drip in that bed.
You scumbag, you maggot,
You cheap lousy faggot.
Happy christmas your arse,
I pray God its our last.

The lyrics have cause the song to be censored and uncensored at various times and in various parts of the world. Aside from any censorship issues though, these aren't words that I would like to sing, nor hear, in my home with family during the holidays. So, I changed the line to...

The apartment was cluttered,
And it smelled like the gutter
Where my sad broken promises
Lay with the trash.
Every cold dreary night
We'd end up in a fight
And I'd pray as you'd yell
That a train'd rattle past.

One critic lamenting my decision, called this verse "benign" (in a negative sense I'm assuming.) You be the judge of which version feels more like the grit of real life, at least the life that the vast majority of us live (not on "junk," etc.). As strong as this song is, I've always felt it's strength to be in evoking a nostalgia and chill loneliness, but at this point in the song the mood derails into a Sid-and-Nancy-like parody of itself. I'm sure many disagree, as evidenced by a number of reviews I've seen where I take flak my decision, but this is to be expected and doesn't bother me. What does bother me, is that these same people only listen close enough to hear that the line in question is missing, but then fail to notice or remark upon the fact that I have changed the entire perspective of the song, and added a new closing verse to the end.

The original song is a duet, and one of my favorites at that. My problem was that I didn't have a girl to sing it with while I was recording on the road. I thought about ditching the song from the record entirely, but ended up deciding to write it in the voice of the male character only, and have him reflecting back years later on these events. This lead to small changes of phrase and rhyme at different points in the song, and the new closing verse, where he is once again, "in the drunk tank." Whether you think this idea good or bad, it's definitely a new way to look at the story and it was fun re-writing it. I also like the close of my version leading into the title track, which could be imagined as his "dream of another life," where all his dreams came true.

Here's the full version of my revision of the song:

It was christmas eve babe
In the drunk tank.
An old man said to me, "Wont see another one."
And then he sang a song,
'The Rare Old Mountain Dew.'
I turned my face away
And dreamed about you.

Got on a lucky one,
Came in eighteen to one,
I had a feeling
That year's for me and you.
Said 'happy Christmas,
I love you baby.
I can see a better time
When all our dreams come true.'

They've got cars big as bars
They've got rivers of gold
But the wind goes right through you
Its no place for the old
When I first took your hand
All your fingers were blue
But I promised you Broadway was waiting for you.

I was handsome,
You were pretty;
Queen of new york city.
When the band finished playing
They howled out for more.
Sinatra was swinging,
All the drunks they were singing,
And we kissed on a corner
Then danced through the night.

And the boys of the NYPD choir
Were singing Galway Bay,
And the bells were ringing out
For christmas day.

The apartment was cluttered,
And it smelled like the gutter
Where my sad broken promises
Lay with the trash.
Every cold dreary night
We'd end up in a fight
And I'd pray as you'd yell
That a train'd rattle past.

I could have been someone
You said "So could anyone,"
And that I took your dreams from you
When first you found me.
But I kept them with me babe,
I put them with my own.
I cant make it all alone
I built my dreams around you.

It's Christmas eve again, in the drunk tank.
I'm an old man now, I won't see another one.
So I'll a sing a song, and sleep when I am through,
And dream of another life, where all our dreams came true.






Here's the lyrics for the title track.

THIS GOOD NIGHT IS STILL EVERYWHERE

I know somewhere the sun is up and it's 95 degrees,
But here the stars are shining and there's frost on all the trees,
And everything looks beautiful as far as I can see,
And this good night is still everywhere to me.

The gospel's on the radio like Jesus come to town,
And right outside my window I see snowflakes falling down,
And everything looks beautiful as far as I can see,
And this good night is still everywhere to me.

The children in bed dreaming, the fire's blazing bright.
My true love nestles near me in the sweet and silent night,
And everything looks beautiful as far as I can see
And this good night is still everywhere to me.






And here is the closer.

THIS IS WAR

This is war like you ain't seen.
This winter's long, it's cold and mean.
With hangdog hearts we stood condemned,
But the tide turns now at Bethlehem.

This is war and born tonight,
The Word as flesh, the Lord of Light,
The Son of God, the low-born king;
Who demons fear, of whom angels sing.

This is war on sin and death;
The dark will take it's final breath.
It shakes the earth, confounds all plans;
The mystery of God as man.