Behind the Songs: Come All Ye Faithful

Interviewer: "Being Irish, I couldn't help but notice the Catholic element to certain song titles on [Made Of Rain], like 'Ash Wednesday' and 'Come All Ye Faithful'."

Richard Butler: "(Laughs) I love the title 'Ash Wednesday', and I love the pomp and circumstance of Catholicism – the rites and rituals. But I was actually drawn to the title 'Ash Wednesday' by TS Eliot. With regard to 'Come All Ye Faithful', I remember singing the hymn in school, and the idea of using it for a song title that was completely secular sounded like a good idea." (Hot Press 2020)

Tim Butler: "That one I [inaudible] for being an idea that came from Rich Good. That was one of his ideas. I think Richard, [inaudible] he liked the vibe of it. He thought the vibe of it – I don't know if you've ever heard of a David Essex song called 'Lamplight.' It had that really menacing – it's a sinister menacing sound. It got Richard into the vibe of it and which direction he was gonna go, lyrically." (Interview with Kyle Meredith, 2020)

Interviewer: "I've heard the first four singles that have been released ["Don't Believe", "You'll Be Mine", "No-One", and "Come All Ye Faithful"] and I really loved them. It seems [Made Of Rain's] going to be an 'all killer no fillers' album."

Paul Garisto: "Thanks and believe me, the best is yet to come." (Melody Lane 2020)

Tim Butler: "One song, 'Come All Ye Faithful'–that chord structure, when Richard brought it in it, was reminiscent of the vibe of a song called 'Lamplight,' by David Essex from the'70s, so we sort of carried on and added to that vibe." (The Pitch 2020)

Interviewer: "'Come All Ye Faithful', with its references to holy rollers and playboys, seems like a dig at televangelists, but you recently told me it has more to do with David Essex…"

Richard Butler: "Remember that old David Essex single 'Lamplight'? The one which came after 'Rock On'? Oh, this sounds terrible, but I always loved the creepy feeling of it. I wanted this to have some of that. I mean, it wasn't led by 'the influence of a David Essex song', but once we'd got it going, I could hear that within it, and thought, Okay, let's get it nice and creepy... so we stuck a church bell in there." (Record Collector 2020)

Richard Butler: "It's a bit about looking for redemption in faith and riches, questioning if either are of any true value and whether redemption is ultimately necessary at all." (Rolling Stone 2020)

Interviewer: "'Come All Ye Faithful' clearly is not a Christmas song but you touch on some issues of faith. Could you talk about that song?"

Richard Butler: "'Come all ye faithful you holy rollers'... it's a lot about people looking down on you for a lack of faith." (Songfacts 2020)

Interviewer: "The song 'Come All Ye Faithful' has been released, along with a video, and it's a powerful statement in terms of sound and in ideas. Is there anything you can tell us about how that song came together or what you like about it?"

Tim Butler: "That song was actually written by Richard and by Rich our 'new' guitarist, who's actually been with us since 2008. Richard wanted the vibe of it to be like the song by David Essex called 'Lamplight'. The vibe of it set Richard off, lyrically. It's sort of menacing and very moody. That gave us a musical direction to go. And so, it's a moody, menacing song."

Interviewer: "Yes, it is. I love how there's a contradiction between the title, which sounds welcoming, and the actual song, where the mood is combative. The contrast is nice."

Tim Butler: "[Laughs] Yeah. Well, that's Richard for you. One of the best lyricists of the past 40 years." (Tower Records 2020)

Interviewer: "I'm loving the new songs. And while there's a very different feel between 'Come All Ye Faithful', 'No-One', 'You'll Be Mine' and 'Don't Believe', the latter I have to say is classic Furs from the opening bars, even before Richard's voice comes in."

Tim Butler: "Err, yeah, I think so. Some of it's more classic, but I think the sound of the whole thing was influenced over the long hiatus we had by the music around us, so of course it's going to seep into what you write, and I think it's very current but still very much Furs."

Interviewer: "I agree, and those first four releases from [Made Of Rain] suggest that wide range. Are those tracks fairly indicative of the LP as a whole?"

Tim Butler: "Yeah, I think everyone will be very pleasantly surprised and we're very, very happy with it. It's a typical Furs album in that it goes from all-out rockers to ballads and back again. That keeps you interested. If an album's all 'balls to the wall' or all laidback, you tend to lose interest. But hopefully this will keep people interested from beginning to end." (WriteWyattUK 2020)