‘Gravy Day’ is an Australian tradition inspired by an unlikely Christmas song by Paul Kelly [Video]

NEW YORK – To many Australians, Saturday is more than just Dec. 21. It’s “Gravy Day,” all because of a lyric in one of the most unlikely Christmas songs ever written.

“How to Make Gravy,” written by singer Paul Kelly, has become a holiday classic in Australia over the past few decades. It was cited this week by the nation’s prime minister, Anthony Albanese, as he announced a decision to release five drug smugglers from prison, and is the subject of a new movie that creates a story behind the song.

“It has become our most-loved Christmas song,” Jeff Jenkins, of the Australian publication The Music, wrote this week.

The story is set in a prison, the lyrics coming from a letter an inmate writes to his brother to pass along a recipe for the family’s Christmas dinner. The song is about much more, though, as “Joe” expresses regret, longing, fear, paranoia, some humor and the near-universal holiday emotion of someone …