Artist: Old 97’s
Song: “Snow Angels”
Album: Love the Holidays
In Their Words: “‘Snow Angels’ is a holiday song written in the tradition of ‘Do You Hear What I Hear?’ Unlike really any other song I’ve ever written, it deals with issues of social justice and world peace in a very upfront way. We are all the same and we are all brothers.” –Rhett Miller
Artist: Ian Foster and Nancy Hynes
Song: “A Week in December”
Album: Ian Foster and Nancy Hynes: A Week in December
In Their Words: “I actually wrote this one in the height of summer (maybe that means I’ve levelled up as a songwriter? It’s a challenge to write a Christmas song in your shorts…haha). But I really started thinking about it last winter visiting a friend in Calgary, and talking about that trip home for that ‘week in December’ that most can manage when they live away.
I think most people who make that visit are confronted with quite a mix of emotions: obviously all the happy ones with family and friends, but also the more difficult ones of seeing your old home with different eyes, and seeing how things have changed. I found that balance interesting to write about, trying to capture that back and forth: beautiful lights…in bad weather, going to a Christmas bar show…that’s cacophonous. It falls into that introspective side of ‘end of the year’ songs, but for my friend – and for me – it ultimately reminds us why we go home that same time every year.
I’m singing with Nancy Hynes, who is my partner in ‘real life,’ and has sung harmony on my records since 2011. This album is called Ian Foster and Nancy Hynes: A Week in December, and is our first true duo record, featuring 10 Christmas classics and 2 originals. Nancy’s love of Christmas music was a driving force from the start, and I knew it would be a duo record right from pre-production.
Director Andrew Winter had a good idea when it came to the overlays using some clever tools in After Effects, and we found some treasure troves of footage — both his and ours — that brought things together. I think he did a great job of adding a different dimension to the song while still keeping true to it — an under-appreciated challenge in making music videos.” – Ian Foster
Artist: Dailey & Vincent
Song: “Let It Snow”
Album: The Sounds of Christmas
In Their Words: “We wanted to include “Let It Snow” on The Sounds of Christmas because when you hear the song’s familiar lyrics and cheerful melody, you can’t help but get into the Christmas spirit.” — Dailey & Vincent
Artist: The McCrary Sisters
Song: “Go Tell It on the Mountain”
Album: Go Tell It on the Mountain/No Room at the Inn
In Their Words: “I have always loved the Staple Singers, so when our producer Scott Billington at Rounder Records shared his idea of using the song ‘Respect Yourself’ for the groove of this song and put ‘Go Tell It On the Mountain’ to that feel, we jumped all over that opportunity. I love it, I pray — and yet I know — you will love it too. So join us on the highest mountain and lowest street corner to proclaim the message of love, joy, peace, and happiness!” – Regina McCrary
Artist: The Mavericks
Song: “Santa Does”
Album: Hey! Merry Christmas!
In Their Words: “‘Santa Does’ came to me in a dream. I woke and scribbled it down. Dreamed the whole thing from top to bottom. It became the genesis for the whole album and spawned a whole batch of new Christmas songs. In the spirit of giving, I let my friends Raul Malo and Allan Miller have writing credit, because you know…that’s what Santa Does!” — Jerry Dale McFadden, The Mavericks
Artist: Rodney Crowell
Song: “Christmas for the Blues”
Album: Christmas Everywhere
In Their Words: “‘Christmas for the Blues’ is an idea I carried around in my notebook for years. Once I got serious about writing an entire album of original Christmas songs, this one came fast. I was looking for the tone and arranging style that I associate with record production in late ‘50s Nashville. It is a straightforward performance with Opry-style backing vocals. No muss, no fuss.” — Rodney Crowell
Every year, the winter season is filled with countless new Christmas albums from the latest cavalcade of pop artists. Meanwhile, some legacy acts recycle the holiday classics for an easy paycheck. Of course, there are those timeless records we revisit again and again, with songs so deeply ingrained in our brains they can take us back in just a few short notes — Kenny & Dolly’s Once Upon A Christmas, anyone??
But for me, there is one album that outpaces all of them: Bob Dylan’s Christmas in the Heart. Maybe it’s the soft gravel of his voice that contrasts the downright cheery disposition of the songs — all supported by Bob’s super-tight backing band. Maybe it’s the fifteen tracks themselves, which range from the most traditional, like “O’ Little Town of Bethlehem” and “Silent Night,” to the absurd — you have not experienced glee until you’ve seen this video of “Must Be Santa.” More than anything, I think it’s the sheer joy that comes across in every note. It’s what Christmas should be all about: silliness and happiness and cheesiness mixed with solemnity and tradition and memory.
Naturally then, to kick off our first-ever BGS Wraps series, we present the album in its entirety. Hopefully it becomes a holiday tradition in your family too.
