Roy Wood is a genius. Honestly, if you look at the guy in 1973—big beard, war paint on his face, looking like a psychedelic wizard who wandered out of a communal forest—you wouldn't necessarily peg him as the architect of the most enduring Christmas earworm in British history. But that is exactly what happened. I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday isn't just a song. It’s a cultural permanent fixture.
It’s loud. It’s messy. It’s got a school choir that sounds like they’ve had way too much orange squash. Yet, every single December, it battles Slade’s "Merry Xmas Everybody" for the top spot on the "most played" list in pubs and shopping centers across the UK.
The Wall of Sound That Roy Built
Most people don’t realize how much technical work went into making a song sound this chaotic. Roy Wood didn't just write it; he produced it, sang it, and played just about every instrument you hear. He wanted to capture that Phil Spector "Wall of Sound" vibe. Think 1960s girl groups but cranked up to eleven with a glam rock fuzz.
He recorded it in August. It was boiling outside. To get in the mood, they allegedly turned the air conditioning in the studio down so low that people were shivering, and they decorated the entire place with tinsel and trees. It sounds like a gimmick, but you can hear that weird, artificial festive energy in the recording.
The track is dense. You have layers of saxophones, heavy drums, and that signature jangly piano. It’s maximalist. Wood was coming off his success with The Move and the early days of Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), which he co-founded with Jeff Lynne. He knew how to layer sound until it felt like it was bursting out of the speakers.
The Mystery of the 1973 Chart Battle
You can't talk about I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday without talking about the 1973 chart race. It’s the stuff of music industry legend. Wizzard released their track, and it was a massive hit, but it never actually hit Number One that year.
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Why? Because Slade happened.
Slade’s "Merry Xmas Everybody" was a juggernaut. It entered the charts at the top and stayed there. It’s one of the great injustices of pop music history that Wood’s masterpiece peaked at Number Four in its debut year. However, longevity is a funny thing. While Slade has the "official" victory, Wizzard’s track has arguably become the more "textured" favorite for people who like a bit of rock and roll grit with their turkey.
Why the Song Feels More "Real" Than Modern Hits
Modern Christmas songs are often too clean. They’re polished in Pro Tools until every ounce of character is sucked out. 1973 was different.
When you listen to the ending of I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday, it descends into this glorious, noisy breakdown. There’s a cash register sound. There’s a choir of kids from Selsdon Park School in Surrey. It feels like a real party that’s getting slightly out of hand. That’s the magic. It captures the actual feeling of Christmas—the clutter, the noise, the slight over-indulgence—rather than a sanitized, Hallmark version of it.
- The Saxophone Solo: It’s honking. It’s not "smooth jazz." It’s rock and roll.
- The Lyrics: "When the snowman brings the snow / Well he might just like to know / He's put a great big smile on somebody's face." It’s simple, sure. But it works because it’s earnest.
- The Visuals: The Top of the Pops performances with the band in costumes and fake snow are burned into the collective memory of an entire generation.
The Financial Reality of a Holiday Standard
Let’s talk money. Because honestly, writing a Christmas hit is better than winning the lottery.
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While exact figures are closely guarded by PRS (Performing Right Society), industry experts like Pete Waterman have often hinted that a "gold tier" Christmas song like this one generates roughly £200,000 to £300,000 in royalties every single year.
Every time it plays in a Tesco, Roy Wood gets a tiny slice of a penny. Every time it’s used in a movie trailer or a TV bake-off montage, the check gets bigger. It is the ultimate pension plan. Wood has joked in interviews that he’s "the man who ruined every December for everyone," but he’s likely laughing all the way to the bank.
The interesting part is that the song didn't even have a proper music video when it first came out. Most of the footage we see now is from those BBC studio performances. It didn't need a high-budget film. The song is the video. It paints the picture for you.
What Most People Get Wrong About Wizzard
People think Wizzard was a "Christmas band." They weren't.
They were an experimental, slightly wild glam rock outfit. They had huge hits like "See My Baby Jive" and "Angel Fingers," both of which actually did hit Number One. Roy Wood was a serious musician who was pushing the boundaries of what pop music could be. It’s almost a bit of a curse that his most famous work is the one that only gets played one month a year.
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He’s a multi-instrumentalist who plays oboe, cello, flute, and bagpipes. You don't get that from a standard pop star. I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday actually features some pretty sophisticated chord changes that you wouldn't expect in a "simple" holiday tune. The way the bridge transitions back into the chorus is a masterclass in songwriting tension and release.
The Evolution of the Recording
There isn't just one version.
In 1981, Roy Wood re-recorded the song because the original master tapes were supposedly lost or damaged at the time (though they were later found). The 1981 version is the one where his vocals sound a bit more mature, and the production is slightly "wider." Most fans still swear by the 1973 original because it has that raw, mono-heavy punch that defines the era.
If you listen closely to the 1973 version on a good pair of headphones, you can hear the sheer volume of "stuff" going on in the background. There are sleigh bells, obviously, but there are also layers of percussion that give it that driving, locomotive feel. It’s a freight train of a song.
Actionable Tips for Your Festive Playlist
If you’re putting together a holiday mix and you want to honor the legacy of this track, don't just bury it in the middle.
- Placement is key. Use it as a "peak" song. It’s high-energy, so it belongs after people have had a few drinks but before they get tired. It’s a "stand up and sing" track.
- Seek out the 1973 original. Check the runtime. The original is roughly 4 minutes and 39 seconds. Some edits cut the "school's out" outro, which is a tragedy because that’s the best part.
- Listen to the B-side. The original 7-inch single had a track called "Rob Roy's Gillie," which is a bizarre contrast to the A-side. It shows just how weird the band actually was.
- Watch the 1973 Top of the Pops footage. If you want to understand the 70s, that video is a time capsule. The hair, the glitter, the sheer joy—it explains why this song stuck when others faded.
Roy Wood once said that he wrote it because he noticed there weren't many new Christmas songs being written in the early 70s. He saw a gap in the market and filled it with a wall of noise and a choir of schoolkids. He didn't just write a song; he created a season-defining moment that survives every trend, from disco to synth-pop to streaming. It’s a reminder that sometimes, more is just more.