HAVE A HAPPY CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY 2013!

ENJOY YOUR CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS, EVERYONE!

"ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU"

A famous classic Christmas pop song is "ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU", here are some of the different versions...

Videos:
- From "Love Actually":


- The original by Mariah Carey:
 

On screen lyrics video:

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2013!

KARAOKE "WE WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS & A HAPPY NEW YEAR!"

It's Christmas Eve, ClickOnEnglish wishes you all a very Merry (not "morry") Christmas & a Happy New Year! And for some practice, here's a karaoke for you to sing along with the melody.

Audio-karaoke "WE WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS..."

MERRY CHRISTMAS & A HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Today, we're all starting our Christmas holiday. It's good to have a break. Hope you enjoy it together with your loved ones and come back full of  enthusiasm for the new term. 

Click on the picture to read this Christmas story by Jackie Lawson.

DICKENS' "CHRISTMAS CAROL"

Ending 2012, the year that commemorates the 200th birthday of British novelist Charles Dickens, IES "Rafael Dieste" is going to close the school term showing a film based on his classic novel "A Christmas Carol". Here we're including some reference about the novel and the film we'll be watching on Friday at 12:30 for 1st & 2nd ESO students.

A Christmas Carol is a novel by English author Charles Dickens, first published on 19 December 1843. The story tells Ebenezer Scrooge's ideological, ethical, and emotional transformation resulting after the supernatural visits from Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Yet to Come. The novel was instant success and critical acclaim.

The book was written and published in early Victorian era Britain, a period when there was both strong nostalgia for old Christmas traditions and an initiation of new practices such as Christmas trees and greeting cards. Dickens's sources for the tale appear to be many and varied but are principally the humiliating experiences of his childhood, his sympathy for the poor, and various Christmas stories and fairy tales.

The story is about Ebenezer Scrooge. At the beginning of the book he is a mean old man who runs a business lending people money. These people are poor and often cannot pay him back. He pays his clerk Bob Cratchit badly.

On Christmas Eve, Scrooge refuses an invitation to his nephew's house for Christmas dinner, telling him he hates it (he calls it a "Humbug"). He then refuses to give money to two men who are collecting for charity.

Later that evening, he is visited by the ghost of his dead business partner Jacob Marley, who went to Hell because of his bad life. He tells Scrooge that the same future will happen to him unless he changes and that during the night he will be visited by three more ghosts. These will show him where he went wrong in his life, and how to be a better person in the future.

The first ghost is the Ghost of Christmas Past. This ghost shows him where he went wrong in the past, showing him his unhappy childhood and how he did not get married.

The second ghost is the Ghost of Christmas Present. This ghost shows him things which are happening now, such as how his clerk, Bob Cratchit, is having a nice Christmas despite not having much money. He also shows him Bob's youngest son, Tiny Tim, who is crippled. Later, the ghost shows him how his nephew is having a good Christmas, and how Scrooge is missing out.

The third ghost is the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. This ghost shows Scrooge what Christmas will be like in the future if he does not change. Firstly, people are shown celebrating a man's death and robbing from his house. The ghost also shows him that Tiny Tim has died. Scrooge is then shown his own grave, and realizes that the celebrations were for his death.

On Christmas morning, Scrooge wakes up and realizes that he has to change. He decides to celebrate Christmas, and help Tiny Tim get better. Through the ghosts' help he becomes a better man.

The tale has been viewed by critics as an indictment of 19th-century industrial capitalism. It has been credited with restoring the holiday to one of merriment and festivity in Britain and America after a period of sobriety and sombreness. A Christmas Carol remains popular and has been adapted to film, stage, opera, and other media many times. It is still a relevant story nowadays.

A Christmas Carol (named on-screen and in promotional material as Disney's A Christmas Carol) is a 2009 3D computer animated motion-capture holiday fantasy comedy-drama film written and directed by Robert Zemeckis. It is an adaptation of the Charles Dickens story of the same name and stars Jim Carrey in a multitude of roles, including Ebenezer Scrooge as a young, middle-aged, and old man, and the three ghosts who haunt Scrooge.

Video trailer of "A CHRISTMAS CAROL" (2009):

More on Dickens at these links:
- Previous post about Dickens at ClickOnEnglish.
- Dickens 2012: Website celebrating his 200th birthday.
- A Galician version of this post @ ArquivosDoTrasno.

ALL THINGS CHRISTMAS: EVERYTHING ABOUT CHRISTMAS TIME

If you want to get completely into the spirit of Christmas, here are some links to webpages where you'll find everything about Christmas and even more... traditions, printables, games, songs, decorations, recipies, stories, cards... and all in English for you to practice. Browse around...

ALL THINGS CHRISTMAS.
CHRISTMAS SONGS IN ENGLISH.
CHRISTMAS VOCABULARY GAME
DIFFERENT NAMES FOR FATHER CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD.
A CHRISTMAS ADVENT CALENDAR.
THE BRITISH CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS ADVENT CALENDAR.

"ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU" A CAPELLA

More Christmas songs. This one is quite original, it's a classic Christmas song "ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU", which has been sung by many famous artists. This is an original version with no instruments, the band NOTA performs it a capella.

Video "ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU", Nota:

Lyrics:
I don't want a lot for Christmas
There's just one thing I need
I don't care about presents
Underneath the Christmas tree
I just want you for my own
More than you could ever know
Make my wish come true
All I want for Christmas is you.

I don't want a lot for Christmas
There is just one thing I need
I don't care about presents
Underneath the Christmas tree
I don't need to hang my stocking
There upon the fireplace
Santa Claus won't make me happy
With a toy on Christmas day
I just want you for for my own
More than you could ever know
Make my wish come true
All I want for Christmas is you
You baby

I won't ask for much this Christmas
I won't even wish for snow
I'm just gonna keep on waiting
Underneath the mistletoe
I won't make a list and send it
To the North Pole for Saint Nick
I won't even stay awake to
Hear those magic reindeer click
'Cause I just want you here tonight
Holding on to me so tight
What more can I do
Baby all I want for Christmas is you
You

All the lights are shining
So brightly everywhere
And the sound of children's
Laughter fills the air
And everyone is singing
I hear those sleigh bells ringing
Santa won't you bring me the one I really need
Won't you please bring my baby to me

Oh, I don't want a lot for Christmas
This is all I'm asking for
I just want to see my baby
Standing right outside my door
Oh I just want him for my own
More than you could ever know
Make my wish come true
Baby all I want for Christmas is
You

All I want for Christmas is you baby
All I want for Christmas is you baby

TRAIN: "SHAKE UP CHRISTMAS"

Here's a Christmas song by the band Train, "SHAKE UP CHRISTMAS".

Video "SHAKE UP CHRISTMAS", Train:


Lyrics:

Ho, ho, ho
Shake up the happiness
Wake up the happiness
Shake up the happiness
It's Christmas time

There's a story that I was told
And I wanna tell the world
Before I get too old
And don't remember it
So let's December it
And reassemble it oh yeah

Once upon a time in a town like this
A little girl made a great big wish
To fill the world full of happiness
And be on Santa's magic list

Chorus
Shake it up
Shake up the happiness
Wake it up
Wake up the happiness
Come on y'all
It's Christmas time

Ho, Ho, Ho
Ho, Ho, Ho
It's Christmas time

At the same time miles away
A little boy made a wish that day
That the world would be okay
If Santa Claus would hear him say
I got dreams and I got love
I got my feet on the ground
And family above
Can you send some happiness
With my best to the rest
Of the people of the East and the West and
Maybe every once in a while you
Give my grandma a reason to smile
Tis the season to smile
It's cold but we'll be freezing in style
And let me meet a girl one day that
Wants to spread some love this way
We can let our souls run free and
She can open some happiness with me

Chorus

I know you're out there
I hear your reindeer
I see the snow where
Your boots have been
I'm gonna show them
So they will know then
Their love will grow when
They believe again

Chorus

It's Christmas time
Chorus

"JOY", TRACEY THORN'S CHRISTMAS SONG FOR 2012

 

Every Christmas, a British or American popstar comes around with their own Christmas album or Christmas song. This Christmas isn't going to be different. They usually cover traditional Christmas songs. This time it's Tracey Thorn's turn. Tracey Thorn was the voice of the 80s duo Everything But The Girl, which she formed together with Ben Watt, after meeting in 1981 at Hull University. The have worked as a duo until 2003. In 2007, Tracey started a solo career. Now, she has made up her own Christmas album "TINSEL & LIGHTS", collecting not so much traditional Christmas songs, but songs that have a Christmas or wintery atmosphere to them, where snow, cold or Christmas concepts are mentioned. And here's the video-single from it "JOY". The video was shot in Lille's traditional Christmas Market in France. En-joy!

 

Video "JOY", Tracey Thorn:

Lyrics "JOY", Tracey Thorn:
WHEN SOMEONE VERY DEAR
CALLS YOU WITH THE WORDS "EVERYTHING'S ALL CLEAR"
THAT'S WHAT YOU WANT TO HEAR
BUT YOU KNOW IT MIGHT BE DIFFERENT IN THE NEW YEAR
THAT'S WHY, THAT'S WHY
WE HANG THE LIGHTS SO HIGH
JOY
JOY

YOU LOVED IT AS A KID
BUT NOW YOU NEED IT MORE THAN YOU EVER DID
IT'S BECAUSE OF THE DARK
YOU SEE THE BEAUTY IN THE SPARK
THAT'S WHY, THAT'S WHY
THE CAROLS MAKE YOU CRY
JOY...

THE TINSEL ON THE TREE, YES I SEE
THE HOLLY ON THE DOOR, LIKE BEFORE
THE CANDLES IN THE GLOOM, LIGHT THE ROOM
THE SALLY ARMY BAND, YES I UNDERSTAND

SO LIGHT THE WINTER FIRE
AND WATCH AS THE FLAMES GROW HIGHER
WE'LL GATHER UP OUR FEARS
AND FACE DOWN ALL THE COMING YEARS
AND ALL THAT THEY DESTROY
AND IN THEIR FACE WE THROW OUR JOY
JOY...

IT'S WHY WE HANG THE LIGHTS SO HIGH
AND GAZE AT THE GLOW OF SILVER BIRCHES IN THE SNOW
BECAUSE OF THE DARK WE SEE THE BEAUTY IN THE SPARK
WE MUST BE ALRIGHT IF WE COULD MAKE UP CHRISTMAS NIGHT"

Songs for Christmas 2011: MICHAEL BUBLÉ, "SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN"

Michael Bublé, Canadian singer, has also turned into Christmas this year. He has released a complete album full of Christmas classics like this "Santa Claus is coming to town".

Video "SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN", Michael Bublé:

Lyrics:
You better watch out
you better not cry
you better not pout
I'm telling you why
('cos) Santa Claus is coming to town.
Oh, let's go...
(Repeat twice)
I mean the big fat man
with the long white beard
he's coming to town.

Video "SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN", Michael Bublé TV performance:

Complete lyrics:
You better watch out
you better not cry
you better not pout
I'm telling you why
Santa Claus is coming to town.
He's making a list
he's checking it twice
he's gonna find out
who's naughty or nice
Santa Claus is coming to town.
He sees you when you're sleeping
and he knows when you're awake
he knows if you've been bad or good
so be good for goodness sake.
(Repeat chorus)
Let's go boys
Now, he sees you when you're sleeping
and he knows when you're awake
he knows if you've been bad or good
so be good for goodness sake.
(Repeat chorus twice)
I mean the big fat man
with the long white beard
he's coming to town.

"HAPPY XMAS (WAR IS OVER)", A CLASSIC LENNON XMAS SONG+THE FRAY'S COVER VERSION

We have found a cover version of one of John Lennon's classic songs, his Christmas song "HAPPY XMAS (WAR IS OVER)". Here is the video of The Fray's version with English & Spanish subtitles and Lennon's audio version with Spanish translation subtitles. Enjoy!

Video "HAPPY XMAS (WAR IS OVER)", The Fray:

Audio "HAPPY XMAS (WAR IS OVER)", John Lennon:

"LAST CHRISTMAS", WHAM! (Another old Xmas song)

Another classic Christmas song from the 1980s by the duo Wham!, "Last Christmas". Surely you've heard it before...


Video "LAST CHRISTMAS", Wham:


Link to Songs page for video with English subtitles & Spanish translation on screen.

Songs for Christmas 2011: MICK HUCKNALL, "HAPPY THIS CHRISTMAS"

As we already explained in December last year, in Britain there's a struggle every Christmas among singers and pop groups to become the number 1 bestselling single in the charts during the Christmas holidays. So, every year, many of the greatest artists of the moment try to reach number 1 on Christmas Eve. The first one to appear this 2011 is Mick Hucknall, ex-leader of the group Simply Red, who does his first solo-work with this Christmas song "HAPPY THIS CHRISTMAS".

Video "HAPPY THIS CHRISTMAS", Mick Hucknall (Christmas 2011):

"HAPPY THIS CHRISTMAS", Mick Hucknall.
Year after year
life whizzing by
here's December
now Christmas is here
tell me the things you remember.
Singing our favourite songs
lets forgive and forget
all the things that we hope
won't go wrong.
CHORUS
People come together
from all over the world,
we'll all come together
tell me can you feel it?
I hope you're happy this Christmas.
Are you cheering for Christmas?
(all over the world)
Looking at the world
wondering where this is going.
The people you love,
the life you have seen,
are we growing?
Singing our favourite songs
so lets forgive and forget
and fill the world with happiness tonight.

Repeat CHORUS
(A merry merry Christmas
Are you happy this Christmas?
all over the world)

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2011! BEGIN IT WITH AN ABBA SONG.

"Happy New Year" is a popular song by Swedish pop group ABBA from their 1980 album "Super Trouper". Although recorded in 1980, the song wasn't released as a single until in 1999. "Felicidad" was the Spanish language version of the song. So wishing you a happy 2011, we leave you with the original video by Abba and another one with the lyrics.
Click to an exercise HERE. Then check your answer below.

Video "HAPPY NEW YEAR", Abba:

Video with the song's lyrics:

"Happy New Year" (noted in red the mistakes found in the previous video lyrics)

No more champagne

And the fireworks are through

Here we are, me and you

Feeling lost and feeling blue

It's the end of the party

And the morning seems so grey

So unlike yesterday

Now's the time for us to say...

Happy new year Happy new year

May we all have a vision now and then

Of a world where every neighbour is a friend

Happy new year Happy new year

May we all have our hopes, our will to try

If we don't we might as well lay down and die

You and I

Sometimes I see

How the brave new world arrives

And I see how it thrives

In the ashes of our lives

Oh yes, man is a fool

And he thinks he'll be okay

Dragging on, feet of clay

Never knowing he's astray

Keeps on going anyway..

Happy new year...

Seems to me now

That the dreams we had before

Are all dead, nothing more

Than confetti on the floor

It's the end of a decade

In another ten years time

Who can say what we'll find

What lies waiting down the line

In the end of eighty-nine...

Happy new year.

THE DIGITAL STORY OF THE NATIVITY 2.0

This is the way how social media, web and mobile tell the story of the Nativity.Christmas story told through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google, Wikipedia, Google Maps, GMail, Foursquare, Amazon... Warch the video.

Video of Digital Nativity 2.0.:

2010 CHRISTMAS SONGS (&4): ANNIE LENNOX, "GOD REST YE MERRY GENTLEMEN"

Another voice that singing Christmas is Annie Lennox (former leader of 80's British pop duo Eurythmics). This year she has released her fourth solo-album devoted entirely to cover Christmas classic songs, here's "GOD REST YE MERRY GENTLEMEN".

Video "GOD REST YE MERRY GENTLEMEN":

Audio + lyrics of the same song in another version:

2010 CHRISTMAS SONGS (3): COLDPLAY, "CHRISTMAS LIGHTS"

Another new 2010 Christmas song entering to be British nº1 hit this Christmas: Coldplay with "Christmas lights".

Lyrics of "CHRISTMAS LIGHTS" - Coldplay

Christmas night, another fight
Tears we cried a flood
Got all kinds of poison in
Poison in my blood
I took my feet
To Oxford Street
Trying to right a wrong
Just walk away
Those windows say
But I can't believe she's gone

When you're still waiting for the snow to fall
Doesn't really feel like Christmas at all
Up above candles on air flicker
Oh they flicker and they float
But I'm up here holding on
To all those chandeliers of hope
Like some drunken Elvis singing
I go singing out of tune
Saying how I always loved you darling
And I always will

Oh when you're still waiting for the snow to fall
Doesn't really feel like Christmas at all
Still waiting for the snow to fall
It doesn't really feel like Christmas at all

Those Christmas lights
Light up the street
Down where the sea and city meet
May all your troubles soon be gone
Oh Christmas lights keep shining on

Those Christmas lights
Light up the street
Maybe they'll bring her back to me
Then all my troubles will be gone
Oh Christmas lights keep shining on
Oh Christmas lights
Light up the street
Light up the fireworks in me
May all your troubles soon be gone
Oh Christmas lights keep shining on

Video of "CHRISTMAS LIGHTS", Coldplay:

2010 CHRISTMAS SONGS (2): KYLIE MINOGUE'S 2010 VERSION OF "LET IT SNOW"

Another Christmas song for 2010 is Kylie's version of an all-time Christmas classic "LET IT SNOW". "Let It Snow", is a song written by lyricist Sammy Cahn and composer Jule Styne in 1945. It was written in July 1945 in Hollywood. First recorded by Vaughn Monroe, it became a popular hit, reaching number one on the Billboard music chart the following year. One of the best-selling songs of all time, "Let It Snow!" has been covered countless times. Due to its seasonal lyrics, it is commonly regarded as a Christmas song. Yet despite its cheery, holiday feel, it is a love song that never mentions Christmas. Here's the latest by Kylie 2010.

Video "LET IT SNOW", Kylie Minogue live at the Rockefeller Center 30-Nov-2010:

Audio "LET IT SNOW", Kylie Minogue + lyrics:

2010 CHRISTMAS SONGS (1): HURTS, "ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS NEW YEAR'S DAY"

In Britain there's a struggle every Christmas among singers and pop groups to become the number 1 bestselling single in the charts during the Christmas holidays. So, every year, many of the greatest artists of the moment try to reach number 1 on Christmas Eve. Today we post one of this year's contestants: It's the British group Hurts again. December 14th was the release daet of the single "ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS NEW YEAR'S DAY".

Video "ALL I WANT FOR XMAS IS NEW YEAR'S DAY", Hurts:

Lyrics* "ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS NEW YEAR'S DAY", Hurts:

*Mistakes of the lyrics in this video:

where it says: "all of the pass waiting out for Christmas"

should say: "All of the bells ringing out for Christmas"