Below is some of the liner notes and credits. Me and all the musicians and singers got together on a Monday night late and did some arrangin' and rehearsin', it was a group effort really. We all got in one room that Friday morning at Amusement Park Studios with Scott Faris being captain of this bluegrass ship and Chris Reynolds at the helm. We made a few minor changes in studio as we went, did a few takes, ate lunch, did a couple more and this thing was in the can. These are working musicians so we all had other gigs to go to, we were done by 3:30 pm. Hard work is a staple in west Texas, and these boys (and the beautiful Haley Burton and Leah Bynum) got it in spades. Not to mention my good (also beautiful) friend Jenni Dale Lord who showed up after everybody else was gone and was listening with me and said "Hey, let me add another high harmony in there" and she sure nuff did in a single take. Pipes, man.
I chose these songs because Christmas is a special time for me as, well... a Christian. It has become a corporate holiday, driven by sales, materialism, and greed, sure, but the birth of that little baby 2000 years ago has inspired some of the most beautiful art and music ever made. It has become overdone, however, because we all love it so much and wear it out, so I took 3 songs that I felt have more meaning in a phrase than most songs written nowadays have in an entire album, and did my best to inject new life into them, inspired by an artform that lives on in festivals but hasn't been "pop" music since the 30's and 40's. Some of them are poignant as well in 2021 "and in His name, all oppression shall cease". Yulegrass, my friends.
Tracks, in order:
O Come, O Come Emmanuel
Oh, Holy Night
Go Tell It On The Mountain
Credits:
Producer: Scott Faris
Mixed by: Scott Faris, Christopher Reynolds, Gunner Driver
Mastered By: Fred Kavorkian
Engineered by: Christopher Reynolds and Scott Faris
Double Bass: Sean Frankhouser
Violin: Leah Bynum
Banjo: Bruce McBee
Acoustic Guitar: Steve Williams
Vocals: Jordan Robert Kirk, Aaron Dick, Haley Burton, Jenni Dale Lord
Artwork: Juan Pablo Long