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Dear God is a song on XTC's 1986 Album Skylarking, controversial because of its anti-God sentiment which might be interpreted as either dystheism or atheism. In the UK, when the song was originally released as a single many record shops refused to stock the track, fearing a religious backlash.
It was not a part of the original Skylarking album, but after DJs across America picked up the song, Geffen Records decided to replace "Mermaid Smiled" with "Dear God." The song was inspired by a series of books[citation needed] with the same title, seen by lead singer Andy Partridge as an exploitation of children. The opening and ending verse is sung by the then eight year old Jasmine Veillette, the daughter of a friend of producer Todd Rundgren. The lyrics are addressed to God, and the singers conclude every verse with the line "I can't believe in you," after vividly describing the range of human suffering, which the narrator attributes to God and implores him to stop. Despite the prayer-like quality, the lyrics strongly imply doubt about God's benevolence ("The wars you bring, the babes you drown, those lost at sea and never found.") and/or his existence ("Did you make mankind after we made you?")
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