Christmas Music @RGM Take Two
After our first collection of Christmas tunes were so well received we’re back with more. This time up we’ve got a lovely slice of festive fun from Olivia Lane and Shannon Labrie is back after impressing all at RGM with her ‘Building’ album earlier this year. We also have a contribution from newcomer Wallis who wasn’t even born when Eric Brace and Last Train Home originally sang about the characters featured in their seasonal offering. It’s enough to make you feel really old…
We’ve featured a fair few artists’ Christmas musical offerings this year at RGM but if I had to choose one artist who’d totally nailed the feel in a wonderfully traditional way I’d start with Olivia Lane. ‘Feeling Like Christmas’ is exactly what an Xmas track should be; catchy, festive and fun. It also has a cool video to match. If you like your country pop delivered with sass and attitude then Olivia Lane should be firmly on your playlist.
No stranger to RGM Shannon LaBrie has a great voice and that voice was perfectly complemented by the thoughtful arrangements on the ‘Building’ album released earlier this year. ‘A Joyful Noise’ recorded with producer/engineer Charles Yingling (Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Ray Price) continues this fine run. Yingling’s family lend their voices to the recording while also appearing in its video which was filmed in LaBrie’s backyard in Nashville.
Being old I’ve no idea if the average fifteen year old still embraces Christmas or are they too cool for all that stuff. I do know that Wallis is one Philadelphia teen who knows how to deliver a Christmas song. Wallis has been writing songs with her dad, who filmed the video on his iPhone, and their first single ‘Lonely Christmas’ is catchy and clever. Wallis even roped in The Schriver Sisters (her sisters Maren (13) and Soleil (10)) to make this a real family affair.
Christmas is often a time for reflection. Eric Brace and his band Last Train Home released an EP in 2000 ‘Holiday Limited’ which featured a mix of original material and festive standards. Eric has revisited a track from that album ‘Christmas In St. Paul’ to see how the characters are doing twenty years later and reflect on the passing of time via ‘By The Lights On The Tree’ a new song for 2020. Very much in the festive tradition, the track beautifully blends brass, banjo and mournful pedal steel and would be a great track at any time of the year. The single is available on all the usual streaming services while the original track ‘Christmas In St. Paul’ is on Spotify.
Eric Brace concludes the latest collection of Christmas music for 2020 here at Red Guitar Music. I hope you’ve found something that’ll add to your Christmas playlist and if you’re visiting friends and loved ones over the holiday season then please remember to take care and stay safe.
After our first collection of Christmas tunes were so well received we’re back with more. This time up we’ve got a lovely slice of festive fun from Olivia Lane and Shannon Labrie is back after impressing all at RGM with her ‘Building’ album earlier this year. We also have a contribution from newcomer Wallis who wasn’t even born when Eric Brace and Last Train Home originally sang about the characters featured in their seasonal offering. It’s enough to make you feel really old…