Everything But The Girl: 25th December
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DJ and producer Ben Watt - once the male half of British alt-pop group Everything But The Girl, along with his life-partner Tracey Thorn, who he finally married last year after 28 years together, and more often than not the author of the EBTG catalog, though only rarely the primary vocalist, as he is in this gentle holiday tune - has a knack for an almost narcissistic self-reflection, especially in looking back wistfully on life. Here, his wishes for the holidays revolve around the unattainable: a second chance, a revisited childhood, and time, always time, and it's a pretty potent mix.
25th December isn't truly a holiday tune, with Christmas relevant predominantly as a focal point and setting for his nostalgia. But the way the song presents the desire for another chance at Christmas past provides an apt, albeit unusually abstract, introduction to our next week's theme, which will see us posting songs that relate to the desires of the season, from presents to presence.
