Sabrina Carpenter’s recent Netflix Christmas special features a duet with Chappell Roan, a performance of Wham!’s ubiquitous holiday classic, ”Last Christmas.” While the song, now 40 years old, has become almost synonymous with the festive season – to the point of inspiring the avoidance game ’Whamageddon’ – it remains a deceptively complex and poignant masterpiece. Beneath the familiar jingle-bell backdrop and upbeat tempo lies a story of heartbreak, vulnerability, and the bittersweet sting of unrequited love. George Michael, just 21 when he wrote, produced, and performed every instrument on the track, captured a universal experience of emotional vulnerability with disarming honesty.
The song’s enduring appeal lies in its ability to evoke both the joy and melancholia of the holiday season. The lyrics, delivered with a mixture of youthful defiance and wounded pride, express the desire to avoid the pain of last year’s heartbreak by giving one’s heart to ”someone special.” This sentiment, coupled with the festive instrumentation, creates a powerful emotional tension that resonates with listeners year after year. The accompanying music video, filmed in the Alps, further enhances this duality, portraying a seemingly idyllic Christmas gathering of friends against the backdrop of George Michael’s subtle but palpable expressions of unrequited affection. The video, with its escalating levels of inebriation (real alcohol was used), captures the bittersweet reality of holiday cheer often masking deeper emotional currents.
George Michael’s personal connection to Christmas added another layer of significance to the song. He envisioned it as a chart-topper, his fourth that year, but its release coincided with Band Aid’s ”Do They Know It’s Christmas,” which ultimately claimed the number one spot. This disappointment, while acknowledged as irrational by Michael himself, hints at the anxieties and insecurities that would later plague his career and personal life. The documentary ”Wham!” reveals his deep-seated desire for Christmas success, stemming from the importance he placed on the holiday. His later struggles with his sexuality, substance abuse, and declining health, culminating in his death on Christmas Day 2016, cast a tragic shadow over the song, imbuing it with a deeper, more melancholic meaning.
”Last Christmas” has since become a holiday standard, covered by countless artists, from pop stars like Ashley Tisdale, Cascada, Carly Rae Jepson, Ariana Grande, and Taylor Swift, to boy bands like the Backstreet Boys, and even finding its way into a Crazy Frog rendition and the television series ”Glee.” Despite these numerous interpretations, none have quite captured the delicate balance of vulnerability and bravado present in the original. George Michael’s youthful uncertainty, subtly woven into the confident delivery of his vocals, creates a unique emotional resonance that remains unmatched. The song’s simple yet effective production further contributes to its enduring power, allowing the raw emotion of the lyrics to shine through.
Carpenter and Roan’s rendition, however, offers a fresh perspective on the classic. Set against a backdrop of post-Christmas party debris – scattered champagne bottles, discarded cups, and haphazardly strung lights – their performance captures a different kind of vulnerability. The scene, depicting the aftermath of festive revelry, symbolizes the emotional hangover that can follow the holidays, echoing the song’s themes of heartbreak and disappointment. Their voices blend seamlessly amidst the chaos, creating a poignant and intimate interpretation of the well-worn lyrics. The setting itself provides a visual metaphor for the emotional landscape of the song, highlighting the contrast between the outward appearance of celebration and the inner turmoil of unrequited love.
This modern interpretation, set against the backdrop of a messy, post-party scene, brings a new dimension to the song’s enduring message. While the original captures the immediate sting of heartbreak during the holidays, Carpenter and Roan’s version reflects the lingering emotional aftermath, the quiet melancholy that settles in after the festivities have ended. Their harmonies, interwoven amidst the remnants of the celebration, create a sense of intimacy and shared vulnerability, reinforcing the universality of the emotions explored in ”Last Christmas.” The song, in its many iterations, continues to resonate with listeners, a testament to its timeless portrayal of love, loss, and the complex emotions that accompany the holiday season.
