Elbow at the Manchester Apollo (Photo: Gary Mather for Live4ever)
This year’s John Lewis Christmas advert is out, and it features a cover of The Beatles‘ Golden Slumbers by Elbow.
Directed by Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind virtuoso Michel Gondry, it follows the fortunes of a boy who strikes up a friendship with Moz, an imaginary monster living under his bed.
“When I told my ex-girlfriend I was doing the next John Lewis Christmas film she said, ‘You have big shoes to fill, this John Lewis commercial must make people cry, don’t forget’,” Gondry has said.
“Last week I showed it to her and she cried. Phew.” Elbow, meanwhile, added:
“This project was such a pleasure. Michel Gondry and the song did all the work for us. We are really proud to be involved.”
Music from the John Lewis ad has been a part of the soundtrack to the UK’s festive season for nearly a decade, and delivered UK number ones for Gabrielle Aplin and Lily Allen in 2012 and 2013 respectively. In 2015, Norwegian singer Aurora was picked to cover the classic Oasis b-side Half The World Away.