David Ireland: Veteran UK Singer Songwriter releases charity Christmas single

STROUD, U.K. - Nov. 7, 2013 - PRLog -- David has been in the business a long time. A familiar figure on the European music scene in the 1970s and 1980s, David is still active and currently recording a new album, 'Cosmic Glue', due for a spring 2014 release.

David has worked with a number of diverse artists over the years, including writing the number two hit 'Vanua Levu' and the only track on a Kayak album by a non-band member - 'May' from Starlight Dancer.

'A Good Old Fashioned Christmas' is out now on iTunes and YouTube and 20% of all sales forever will go toward The Big Issue Foundation. The download links are here: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/good-old-fashioned-christmas/id735947675

or here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pe3T8NC0E-E
or here - http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/davidireland2

"Nearly 100 people a week turn to the Big Issue for an opportunity to help themselves at a time of utter personal crisis. The Big Issue Foundation is small but national charity. We work with some of the most disadvantaged and excluded individuals in the land; people who have lost more than it is comfortable to imagine, their homes, their families and their sense of themselves in the world. We urgently need to offer more support and hope for the future."

"Our mission is to connect vendors with the vital support and personal solutions that enable them to rebuild their lives; to find their own paths as they journey away from homelessness." The Big Issue Foundation

You can help by downloading this track, sharing with your friends, posting on your facebook page and tweeting. Go on...make a difference

A Good Old Fashioned Christmas, created by musician David Ireland, was inspired by the Big Issue's philosophy that everyone of us can make a small difference and so, together, contribute to real, significant and lasting change.

David Ireland and Skyhook Studios are donating 20 per cent of all sales and royalties from the single to the charity and hopes that it can also demonstrate how little it takes to change a life. For example, just £20 can support efforts to help a vendor end rough sleeping, and £15 can provide access to training and employment.

"We are absolutely delighted that the first record we're producing is for such a wonderful cause," says Chris Aylmer, owner of Skyhook Studios. "We hope it will go some way to make a difference to the work The Big Issue Foundation is doing in the UK."

"The Big Issue works with some of the most disadvantaged people in the UK - nearly 100 people a week turn to them at a time of personal crisis," adds David Ireland. "They are completely reliant on donors and fundraising to help these people rebuild their lives. It could be any of us out there. I am especially moved by their drive to raise awareness of the issue in schools, as so many people who are homeless say they first ran away as a child, and more and more people end up rough sleeping when they are still in their teens. If we can't take a moment to think about that one fact at Christmas then the whole season means very little."

Here are the lyrics of the song...

A Good Old Fashioned Christmas

words & music David Ireland

Ho Ho Ho Ho!

Do you wish you had a stash of cash to blow?
Well, we're all in the same boat – who’s got the dough?
So come on buck the trend
We can all make do and mend
Just dust off last year’s trimmings - who’s to know?

And does it feel as if your back's against the wall?
Well, it’s the Christmas thoughts that count, however small
Forget those winter blues, don't stand shivering in the queues
Cause peace and understanding is the greatest gift of all

Let’s have a Good Old Fashioned Christmas
With sleigh bells in the snow
A Good Old Fashioned Christmas
Like the ones we used to know
Peace and understanding is the greatest gift of all
So let’s all have a Good Old Fashioned Christmas

Do you wish that you could ride on Santa’s sleigh?
And leave your cares and worries far away
Well, we all hold the key to set the world free
So let’s lend the hand of friendship everyday.

At Christmas there's no room
For all that gloom and doom
The newsman gives us every blooming day
Just go that extra mile
And in a little while your Christmas smile will twinkle all the way!

Let’s have a Good Old Fashioned Christmas
With sleigh bells in the snow
A Good Old Fashioned Christmas
Like the ones we used to know
Peace and understanding is the greatest gift of all
So let’s all have a Good Old Fashioned Christmas

and the choir sang...
Let's all have a Good Old Fashioned Christmas-time for everyone
Let's all give the greatest gift...

copyright 2013 Skyhook Studios