I’d like to share another obscure Christmas song. I always enjoy finding Christmas songs that not many people know, and I’d wager many people have probably not heard of this one, but it’s one of my favorites. It was written by Chris de Burgh in 1975, and it’s called “A Spaceman Came Travelling.” It enjoyed some popularity in the UK in the 70s and 80s.
However, it’s not so much De Burgh’s version that I like, but a cover by a German choral group called Gregorian. This group does some remarkable chant-style remixes of popular songs, and they included this song in a Christmas album. The basic premise of the song is that the angel Gabriel could have been an intergalactic traveler, and the star of Bethlehem guiding the shepherds was actually his spaceship floating in the sky.
Crazy, sure, but maybe a little thought-provoking that someone would travel light years through space to deliver the news of the Savior’s birth. The whole idea may be a little strange, but Gregorian’s cover of the song is beautiful. It’s one of those songs that really grows on you the more you listen to it, so give it a listen here. I’ve also included some of this group’s other non-Christmas songs below.
A spaceman came travelling on his ship from afar,
‘Twas light years of time since his mission did start,
And over a village he halted his craft,
And it hung in the sky like a star, just like a star…He followed a light and came down to a shed,
Where a mother and child were lying there on a bed,
A bright light of silver shone round his head,
And he had the face of an angel, and they were afraid…Then the stranger spoke, he said “Do not fear,
I come from a planet a long way from here,
And I bring a message for mankind to hear,”
And suddenly the sweetest music filled the air…And it went La La…
Peace and goodwill to all men, and love for the child…This lovely music went trembling through the ground,
And many were wakened on hearing that sound,
And travellers on the road, the village they found,
By the light of that ship in the sky, which shone all round…And just before dawn at the paling of the sky,
The stranger returned and said “Now I must fly,
When two thousand years of your time has gone by,
This song will begin once again, to a baby’s cry…”And it went La La … This song will begin once again
To a baby’s cry…
And it goes La La… Peace and goodwill to all men, and
Love for the child…(additional lyrics from original)
Oh the whole world is waiting, waiting to hear the song again,
There are thousands standing on the edge of the world,
And a star is moving somewhere, the time is nearly here,
This song will begin once again, to a baby’s cry…