Slade legend Dave Hill reveals secret behind their hit Merry Xmas Everybody
Slade legend Dave Hill says the secret behind the success of Merry Xmas Everybody is that it’s about normal Brits having a normal Christmas.
The festive rock anthem was originally released in 1973 and beat Wizzard's I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday to the coveted number one spot, remaining at the top of the charts until February 1974. The track has soundtracked every Christmas ever since, and Dave believes it has been played for the last 52 years because it’s sentiment is about family, presents and good drink up.
He said: “That Christmas song is 52 years old. The Christmas song defies logic. It grew from a great idea to the best Christmas song in the world, in fact, the most successful Christmas song in the world. It touches people of any age from nine to 90. It’s a masterpiece of a song. It’s nothing to do with religion, it’s to do with what we do at Christmas."
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Reflecting on the track further on the Music Industry podcast Dave he added: “I mean, it's not a jingle bell song. It's not a religious song. It's about everybody having half a dozen, getting the booze down, getting the family around, buying presents, everything we like about Christmas. Trees, snow, if you're lucky, which we never were half the time.
“But the thing about the Christmas song, undeniably, none of us at that time would know what would happen to that song, and what it would become.”
Dave, 79, believes the UK has similar problems in 2025 to what the country had in 1973 when we had three-day weeks and “Britain was on its knees”, which makes Merry Xmas Everybody even more poignant. He said: “That song came out in 1973 when Britain was on its knees. There were three-day weeks, strikes, we were short of money, but that song lifted a nation. It did. And every year they can’t think of Christmas without hearing that song.
“They’ve still got the anthem and we’re still going through a tough time. I have a philosophy in life, the thing is we’re all, in a way, having a tough time. Be kind to one another because everybody is having a tough time. That includes rich people, poor people, ordinary people.
“It’s almost like kindness has become less in our world.”
Merry Xmas Everybody earns up to £1 million in royalties every year, with writers Noddy Holder and Jim Lea banking the majority of the money.
But Dave insists he isn’t jealous of his former bandmates, he is just proud to have played on such a fantastic record along with drummer Don Powell.
When asked if he has a pang of regret at not having a songwriting credit, he said: “No. Noddy and Jim were excellent writers. I didn’t write it. It was good to have two people who really knew how to write hit records. Jim was very talented, he’s a violin player, a piano player, a bass player, he’s an all round talent.”
The original line-up of Slade disbanded in 1992 with singer Noddy leaving to pursue other projects and an acting career. Dave continues to tour as Slade, but even though Noddy left the group over 30 years ago the pair remain best friends and have supported each other through each other’s health issues.
Dave had a stroke during a concert in Nuremberg, Germany in 2010 which he recovered from, while Noddy was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer in 2018 and despite only being given six months to live he responded well to treatment with his wife Suzan Holder going public with his condition in 2023.
Discussing his friendship with Noddy, Dave said: “There is definitely something between me and Noddy that’s always been strong, all the way through it all. Although the band split up, I never split from Noddy. We always see each other. He’s been through a tough time, he went through a health scare. But he’s well and he’s doing alright. Like us all there’s been health issues, strokes and this that and the other. Noddy is one of my all-time best friends and remains so. We were like that from day one when I first asked him to join me. We have such a good relationship.”
Away from Slade, Dave has been busy recording his first ever solo album this year, working with Noddy’s producer son Django Holder on the LP titled Dirtyfoot Lane, which is named after a real place in his hometown of Wolverhampton and which will be released in 2026.
Dave has written a song in tribute to his former Slade bandmates Noddy, Jim and Don, which is called Thanks For The Good Times, reminiscing about their decades of hits. Although he has teamed up with Noddy’s son for the record, Dave doesn’t think he and Noddy will ever perform together again.
He said: “I wouldn’t ask him. If he wanted to suggest it to me himself that would be different. But I know he’s not thinking about it. He doesn’t need to perform … He’s married to a lovely wife and he’s very happy. Working with Noddy’s son Django Holder has been the cherry on the cake.”
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