All Together Now
A 1990 single about the 1914 Christmas truce, built on a Pachelbel chord progression.
The Farm, from Spartacus (1990)
Released on Produce on November 26, 1990, with the single at 3:59 and the album and 12-inch at 5:41, it was produced by Suggs, who cut it from six verses to three for radio, at Mayfair Studios in London. Hooton and Grimes wrote the lyrics, with Pachelbel credited for the borrowed chord progression. After hearing Primal Scream's "Loaded" the band wanted dance-oriented music; Grimes wanted to use Pachelbel's Canon after hearing it in a TV advert, they bought a sampler and contacted Terry Farley, who said it was a hit and needed lyrics, and Hooton reused lyrics from "No Man's Land". The subject is the 1914 Christmas Day Truce; his handwritten lyrics were displayed at the Museum of Liverpool from December 17, 2014.
It reached 4 in the UK and 1 on the UK Indie chart, 5 in Germany, 7 on US Modern Rock and 9 on the Dutch Top 100. The video is black and white, with a Subbuteo soldier with a Bren gun on the sleeve. AllMusic's Erlewine called it goofily endearing, NME's Andrew Collins the LP's grandest moment, and Billboard's Larry Flick anthemic. It was Sky Sports Football League's theme from 2004 to 2009, was used in Labour's 2017 campaign and is the end theme of the 1994 film Double Dragon.
The Everton FA Cup Squad version (May 1995) reached 24, the Euro 2004 version (DJ Spoony edit, May 31, 2004) 5, and Goleo VI with Atomic Kitten's "All Together Now (Strong Together)" (May 13, 2006) 16 in Germany. The Peace Collective re-recording (December 15, 2014) reached 70, with proceeds to the British Red Cross and the Shorncliffe Trust, produced by Simon Britton and Jon Moon, after the Premier League approached the band. Setlist.fm lists only 17 Farm setlists, so its counts are a poor guide. We do not know which version our upload is, though the 5:41 album version is likely.
Covers and versions
- Everton FA Cup Squad (1995) Released May 1995, 24 in the UK.
- Peace Collective (2014) A re-recording for charity, 70 in the UK.
Sources
- All Together Now (The Farm song), Wikipedia
- No Man's Land lyrics display, National Museums Liverpool
- Why All Together Now should be Christmas number 1, Official Charts Company
- The Farm, The Farm