Since 2006 The Killers have made an annual tradition of composing and releasing a Christmas single for the AIDS awareness organisation (RED) and this year they’ve teamed up with comedian Jimmy Kimmel for the track Joel, the Lump of Coal.
Dubbed by Kimmel himself as “the greatest holiday song ever recorded by non-chipmunks” the sentimental tune is about a hapless lump of anthracite who thought Santa would want to deliver him as a present but instead was used to teach a lesson to a badly-behaved child. Many more touching holiday lessons are learned.
Kimmel debuted the music video on his TV show and appears in the clip as the voice of Santa Claus. Preceding the song’s debut, Kimmel delivers a series of Christmas song ideas to the band, including themes like “A Very YOLO Christmas,” and “Grandma getting run over not by a reindeer but in this case run over by a fat family who’s waiting in line on Black Friday to buy a Blu-ray player or something like that for $18”.
The Killers have previously collaborated on their Christmas tunes with the likes of Elton John, Owen Wilson and Pet Shop Boys singer Neil Tennant. This year’s tune, Joel, the Lump of Coal is available for purchase on iTunes for purchase, and all proceeds go the (RED) campaign, a global fund to fight AIDS. Watch the video below.
Watch: “Joel, the Lump of Coal” by The Killers & Jimmy Kimmel
