Frankie Goes To Hollywood‘s “The Power Of Love” is a certified Christmas classic in the UK, a connection that’s long been lost on me.

My initial exposure to the song was via its nearly 10-minute extended mix, which I frankly found unsettling, particularly the talky bits. “I’ll protect you from the Hooded Claw / Keep the vampires from your door” isn’t exactly the kind of sentiment one hears this time of year. In fact, there’s nothing explicitly Christmas-y about the “The Power Of Love,” just a directive to “Make love your goal.” I imagine the 1984 single became forever associated with the holiday because of its Nativity-themed music video. Can’t get much more Christmas-y than the ‘reason for the season.’

Released in mid-November 1984, “The Power Of Love” reached #1 in the UK three weeks later, just ahead of Band Aid’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” Now “The Power Of Love” has been covered by 20-year-old English singer-songwriter Gabrielle Aplin for a Christmas ad campaign from UK retailer John Lewis. And just like the original, Aplin took her take to the top spot too, almost to the very day that Frankie Goes To Hollywood did 28 years earlier.

“I was worried people might hate me because they were so attached to the original single,” Aplin told the Daily Mail last month. “But I’ve since been in touch with [Frankie Goes To Hollywood frontman] Holly Johnson, and he said some lovely things about my take on his song. He likes it, and that’s enough for me.”

Even with Johnson’s endorsement, some across the pond might still consider Alpin’s cover sacrilege, but I prefer it to the original. It’s more than enough for me:

Purchase Gabrielle Aplin – “The Power Of Love” (Frankie Goes To Hollywood cover) via iTunes.