Have a Coke and a ... Santa?

How did Santa get his red suit? This playful song traces Saint Nicholas's makeover — from a slim figure in green and brown to the rosy, cola-toting icon that corporate built — and asks what we trade away when a tradition becomes a brand.

Lyrics

Santa used to be a slimmer tall man,

His robes were made of green and brown and blue.

But when people sought to ask him for a present,

Who he was had everyone confused.

So he got a call from corporate,

They said, "We know just what to do.

If you wear the colors of our logo,

We'll market a campaign and sponsor you."

Now Santa's wearing red for corporate,

Sitting in his giant chair down at the mall.

And children line up just to get a closer look,

While Santa promotes toy trains and dolls.

Oh, Santa's wearing red for corporate,

And he's smiling in advertisements too.

He holds up high his bottle full of cola,

Then turns and gives us all a wink or two.

Back when he was old Saint Nicholas,

He slipped through town and helped the poor at night.

He would toss a bag of gold through open windows,

Then disappear before the morning light.

But corporate had a different point of view,

"Let's make him cheerful, round, and bright.

Give him fur and shiny black boots,

And make his beard more full and snowy white."

Now Santa's wearing red for corporate,

Sitting in his giant chair down at the mall.

And children line up just to get a closer look,

While Santa promotes toy trains and dolls.

Oh, Santa's wearing red for corporate,

And he's smiling in advertisements too.

He holds up high his bottle full of cola,

Then turns and gives us all a wink or two.

The painters put him on the billboards,

In magazines and every shop display.

And gas stations hung his famous posters,

By the snowy fields where children play.

And now we see him on the street corners,

In every city, everywhere.

In his red-and-white suit and black boots,

With his big round belly and snowy white hair.

Now Santa's wearing red for corporate,

Sitting in his giant chair down at the mall.

And children line up just to get a closer look,

While Santa promotes toy trains and dolls.

Oh, Santa's wearing red for corporate,

And he's smiling in advertisements too.

He holds up high his bottle full of cola,

Then turns and gives us all a wink or two.

Now he's on the signs and billboards,

He's on buses, trucks, and trains.

He's on mugs and Christmas sweaters,

And inflatable lawn displays.

Children smile and wave when they see him,

Stores put decorations by the ton.

And corporate counts another billion dollars,

While Santa laughs and says, "Well, isn't this fun?"

Now Santa's wearing red for corporate,

And the whole world knows exactly who he is.

From the Arctic down to Australia,

Everybody recognizes him.

Yes, Santa's wearing red for corporate,

Though he sometimes misses how things used to be.

But if he can make a million children smile,

He says, "I guess that's good enough for me."

They say Christmas is about tradition,

Though traditions sometimes change their ways.

Just don't let the marketing department

Start promoting an Easter Bunny craze!