Spare us from festive muzak
Last updated 11:25, Wednesday, 26 November 2008
Last weekend I had a wander through the shops in Carlisle city centre in search of Christmas present ideas. Since this is usually something I do at 4pm on Christmas Eve I was congratulating myself on my forward planning.
As I browsed in one shop, Kylie Minogue’s sultry version of Santa Baby was wafting across the sound system.
This was followed closely by Paul McCartney, claiming he was simply having a wonderful Christmas time. Not far behind was his old songwriting partner John Lennon singing Happy Christmas (War Is Over). Now I am a great fan of the Beatles, so though these are not my favourite Lennon and McCartney compositions I tolerated them.
That is until they were followed by Shakin’ Stevens’ Merry Christmas Everyone, Cliff Richard’s Mistletoe and Wine and of course Band Aid’s Do They Know It’s Christmas?
If I hadn’t made a getaway when I did I’m sure I would have also been subjected to Slade and Mariah Carey. So I had to get out fast.
I suppose the idea behind all this is to put us in the mood and help encourage us to spend our money.
In mid-November it is nice to be reminded that Christmas is only a few weeks away.
I hope I’m not being Ebenezer Scrooge in complaining that I could do without the Christmas muzak. Whatever it is about Christmas pop songs, they are almost without exception irritating – rather like the terrible, badly-sung singles that football teams used to release.
No doubt some marketing expert somewhere discovered that music while you shop increases takings. But I would have spent longer in the shops if I hadn’t been subjected to the handful of oft-repeated Christmas pop songs.
They are enough to drive anyone Christmas crackers. How shopworkers can stand it all day long is beyond me.
If there isn’t a health and safety rule protecting them from Mariah Carey, then there should be.
