Cliff Richard to Release Reggae Version of Psalm 23 as Christmas Single
Cliff Richard is recording a reggae arrangement of «The Lord Is My Shepherd» with songwriter Chris Eaton, aiming for a Christmas single and a festive album in 2027. The announcement, made at a London event promoting his new compilation, has drawn mockery online.
Cliff Richard is preparing a reggae version of «The Lord Is My Shepherd» for release as a Christmas single, the singer has said. The 86-year-old plans to record the new take on the biblical psalm with Chris Eaton, the songwriter behind his 1990 UK Christmas Number One «Saviour's Day». The track is expected to form part of a festive album in 2027.
Richard explained that the arrangement had required him to learn an unfamiliar style. «I've never sung reggae before, but Chris is really good at it. He's phrased it like that, so I'm learning reggae,» he said during a conversation at the Rose Theatre in Kingston, London. «He's written me Number Ones at Christmas, and his new song is based on one of the psalms. I can't sing it yet as I've not learnt it. But it goes, 'The Lord Is My Shepherd…' and it's reggae.»
The announcement drew a wave of ridicule on social media, with critics questioning the pairing of the veteran pop singer with the Jamaican genre. One user wrote that it «sounds so wrong», while another asked: «Dear God, wasn't 'Mistletoe & Wine' bad enough?» Others joked that «Reggae Psalms With Cliff Richard» sounded like a sketch idea, and one commenter remarked: «I was not expecting to see reggae and Cliff Richard in the same sentence and yet here we are.»
The remarks came during a question-and-answer session held to promote Richard's new album «Only Number Ones», which is released on 27 November. The collection features the star putting his own stamp on a selection of his favourite chart-topping hits, including a new version of «White Christmas» and covers of songs by artists such as Harry Styles and The Monkees. A two-CD deluxe edition adds Richard's own hits, among them the festive chart-toppers «Mistletoe And Wine» and «Saviour's Day», and the UK Number One «The Millennium Prayer».
Richard has had four UK Christmas Number Ones in total: «I Love You» with The Shadows in 1960, «Mistletoe And Wine» in 1988, «Saviour's Day» in 1990, and «Do They Know It's Christmas» with Band Aid II in 1989. Speaking about the new record, he said he had proposed the concept to Warner Music. «I suggested to Warner Music that I record an album of songs that made it to Number One. Thank heavens they agreed!» he explained. «I listened to dozens of songs and chose 12 of my favourites. This record is my tribute to fabulous artists who had recorded wonderful tracks that achieved the number one position.»
The reggae psalm project extends a long association between Richard and Christmas music, a genre in which he has repeatedly scored chart success. It also follows a period of personal difficulty: late last year he revealed that he was undergoing treatment for prostate cancer, describing the screening process as «absolutely ridiculous». Around the same time, he played a festive show at London's Royal Albert Hall.
If released as planned, the single would mark another attempt at the Christmas top spot, this time with a setting of Psalm 23 — the text that begins «The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want» — recast in a Caribbean idiom. For now, Richard says the song remains a work in progress as he masters its rhythm ahead of the planned recording.
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