Artists: Joe Newberry & April Verch
Song: “Christmas Eve”
Album: On This Christmas Day
In Their Words: It was pretty much a given that as a duo that loves fiddle and banjo duets that we would include the old tune ‘Christmas Eve’ when recording our first Christmas album, On This Christmas Day. While there are some great versions of this tune out there, our favorite is from Oklahoma fiddle legend Uncle Dick Hutchison. We studied the field recording made by Kevin Delaney in 1973 of Uncle Dick playing this tune. The extra beat of an A note in the B part of the tune really sets it apart and it just tickles us every time. It never gets old!
“This holiday album has been in the wings since our very first Holiday Cheer Tour, which came in December 2016, just a few months after we started performing together. From the very first holiday show, audience members started asking, ‘Where is the CD?’ During the pandemic we finally had time to ‘bubble together’ and create this collection of tunes and songs. Most of these songs are our originals, and we’re so excited to share this music with the world.” — Joe Newberry & April Verch
