Writers: Greg Lake and Pete Sinfield
Producer: Greg Lake
Recorded: Summer 1975 in London
Released: Fall 1975
| Players: | Greg Lake — vocals, guitar Keith Emerson — keyboards Carl Palmer — percussion |
| Album: | The Best Of Emerson, Lake & Palmer (Atlantic, 1980) |
“I Believe In Father Christmas” was conceived by Emerson, Lake & Palmer (ELP)'s singer-bassist Greg Lake as a solo venture.
Lake has said he's surprised when people take the song's meaning as anti-religious and anti-Christmas, which he says is not what he intended.
The orchestral version of the song debuted during the 1975 holiday season and reached Number Two on the U.K. chart. It only made it to Number 95 on the Billboard Hot 100, however. Nevertheless, the song has become a perennial favorite each holiday season in both the U.S. and the U.K.
A less-orchestrated version appears on Emerson, Lake & Palmer (ELP)'s album Works II, with keyboardist Keith Emerson and drummer Carl Palmer's parts added to it
In 1993, Lake rerecorded “I Believe In Father Christmas” for the Emerson, Lake & Palmer (ELP) boxed set The Return Of The Manticore. For the new version, he was joined by producer Keith Olsen, guitarist Tim Pierce, and a four-voice choir.
