National sounds of the season from Old Crow Medicine Show, Yo Gabba Gabba, Lukas Haas, and more
Lukas Haas
Thanks to Turkey Day coming right at the end of November, this year’s holiday season is truncated into five incredibly packed weeks. With Christmas-themed concerts, performances, pop-ups, and film screenings happening seemingly every night from now until New Year’s Eve, it can feel difficult to get into the holiday spirit if you can’t make it out of the house.
Thankfully, as per usual, there is a cavalcade of musical releases to enjoy from the comfort of your couch. Heck, add these tracks to your playlist and use them to pre-game for your next get-together while you’re on the elliptical at the gym, if you’re so inclined. With sounds for fans for every genre, we’ve put together a massive roundup for you to enjoy, divided into local and national releases. Here’s the national artists roundup, with a definite emphasis on the twangy and homespun.
Old Crow Medicine Show, OCMS XMAS
If you live long enough as a musical act, it seems almost inevitable that you’ll eventually make a Christmas album, and that inevitability goes double for those in the jazz and roots music fields. Thus, venerable road dogs Old Crow Medicine Show bring us their holiday album, but happily, it’s mostly originals. While featuring interpretations of Burl Ives’ “Holly Jolly Christmas” and John Lennon’s “Happy Xmas (War Is Over),” it’s rave-ups like “Corn Whiskey Christmas” and thoughtful reflections such as “Store-Bought Christmas” that make this more than just another Christmas record.
If you buy this on vinyl at select indie retailers, there’s a bonus 7-inch featuring two songs not available on streaming. One of those songs sees OCMS doing “Christmas in the Trenches,” and it’s worth the time and effort to track down the band’s jig-and-reel version of John McCutcheon’s enduring classic.
Trisha Yearwood, Christmastime
Country music star Trisha Yearwood loves Christmas. When she married Garth Brooks in 2005, she walked down the aisle to “Christmastime is Here.” Granted, they wed on December 10, but that’s a big flex, so it’s unsurprising that Yearwood tackles that Vince Guaraldi Trio song as the opening track on her new album, Christmastime.
When contrasted with her latest record, the July release The Mirror, it’s much less country than one might expect, replete with big strings on most of the tracks, but the intimate acoustic twang of “Years” and her duet with husband Brooks, “Merry Christmas, Valentine,” will make her longtime fans happy.
Jill Schoelen, Christmas is Forever
In the ’80s, actress Jill Schoelen was everywhere, from genre classics like The Stepfather, Popcorn, and early Brad Pitt vehicle Cutting Class, to say nothing of starring alongside a baby Keanu Reeves in Babes in Toyland, but like so many of her peers, she took time off to be a mom. In the last few years, though, Schoelen has begun to stage a comeback, and it’s a multifaceted one. In addition to working on independent films, the actress just released her first recordings in over 16 years.
Entitled Christmas is Forever, the holiday EP features Schoelen taking on such songs as “Jingle Bell Rock,” Amy Grant’s “I Need A Silent Night,” and Joni Mitchell’s “River,” but the absolute highlight is a wild version of “Here Comes Santa Claus” with fellow genre icons Barbara Crampton, Diane Franklin, Krsy Fox, and Judie Aronson. The dancefloor banger sounds like EG Daily joined the Spice Girls and might be the most fun you’ll have this season. You absolutely have to watch the video, because it takes the song to another level.
Janet Devlin, “My Little Christmas Special”
Irish singer-songwriter Janet Devlin YouTube Special, “My Little Christmas Special,” is an intimate affair. Shot at George Ezra’s Hotel Québec Recording Studio in Hertford, UK, the special sees Devlin showcase her original Christmas songs alongside covers like a boisterous rendition of “Fairytale of New York” with fellow collaborator and artist Maddox Jones and a folky take on Slade’s glam holiday anthem, “Merry XMas Everybody.” While not as star-studded or glamorous as recent Christmas offerings from Sabrina Carpenter or Kacey Musgraves, it’s so utterly charming, you’ll find yourself tearing up more than once.
A Very Awesome Yo Gabba Gabba! Christmas
There are songs from My Chemical Romance, Jason Lytle of Grandaddy, and Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo, and the whole cast of the beloved children’s show, including DJ Lance Rock, Brobee, Toodee, Muno, Foofa, and Plex on a A Very Awesome Yo Gabba Gabba! Christmas. Plus, Cults, James Huggins of of Montreal, Ricky Fitness of The Aquabats, Tony Hawk, Cameron Webb, and even Santa Claus himself make appearances, and it’s just a family-friendly collection of songs which tug at the heartstrings or maybe cause a dance party.
Or, in the case of the video for “Christmas Is Upon Us,” both.
Lukas Haas, “Christmas Cheers” feat. Robert Oberst
Based on the litany of sins related in this song, singer/actor Lukas Haas’ “naughty is way too long,” but yeah, we could use a lowkey-yet-rowdy country Christmas tune this year. Y’know: something to which you can drunkenly sway and shout the chorus with everyone else who’s about three spiked egg nogs deep. At the request of The Righteous Gemstones‘ music supervisor, Haas evidently originally wrote the song in character as Chuck Montgomery for what was supposed to be a Gemstones Christmas album and holiday special.
However, the show was cancelled by HBO, and when the show went away, so did said planned album. Happily, Haas got the blessing from the folks behind Righteous Gemstones and here we are, and the “Christmas Cheers” video even features his former co-star Robert Oberst, who played his brother Karl in season 3.
