If you ever worry that Rock driven Pop has gotten too "pretty", too well produced, too formulaic, know that there is always somebody somewhere who is going to rip that scab off and return it to the raw open wound it was always intended to be. Here, from Augusta, Georgia, is Eat Lightning with some raw and bleeding Garage Rock Pop...just like God intended. That's what Christmas is really all about, Charlie Brown. "I'm Not Coming Home For Christmas" is yours for the taking at Bandcamp.
I love these guys.
The Department of Creative Affairs aren't really a group. They work for an Australian company, Department of Creative Affairs, who assist other companies through web design, graphic design, video production, etc. And, when you have a company that's built around creativity, you naturally do some creative things. There's at least one company in the U.S. that I know of that does an annual in-house Christmas CD (well, they used to...digital killed the CD star) and, because I crossed paths with one of their resident geniuses, I have a few of those CDs and they're among the best things in my overly large collection (miss you, Mark). In the case of The Department of Creative Affairs, they do an annual Christmas charity single. The single does get pressed to vinyl, but the vinyl copies go to, I dunno, clients and employees I guess. For we in the general public, the only way to get a copy of the vinyl 45 is to donate the most to the Agency's charity via Bandcamp for their otherwise name-your-price Christmas song by January 1. Allegedly. The chosen charity, at the moment, is the Lost Dogs Home. "Be My Christmas Baby" is vintage Garage Rock from the 60s. Previous efforts tackled 80s Synth Pop and 90s Hip Hop. The lyrics tend me to be dryly humorous. But, musically, this year's is spot on. Very cool. Get all three from Bandcamp.  DOWNLOAD FREE AT CIGAR BOX NATION 1. Waiting for the Wise Men by Jim Morris 2. Sleekit Santa by C# Merle 3. Silent Night by Mark Jeghurs 4. Steve's Christmas Log by Jamie MacBlues 5. Christmas Credit Card Blues by Clint Lavens 6. A Cold and Snowy Night by CDA Ramirez 7. Wickerbee the Wannabee by Chuck Otto 8. Bug's Xmas Song - Have a Thought for Christmas by Buggy 9. Christmas Wishes by Eric Denton 10. Christmas Comin' Round Again by Glenn Kaiser 11. Christmasses Long Ago by Derek Rose 12. Doin' Shots with Santa Claus by RTZ Guitars 13. Into the Light - a Song for Advent by Henry Lowman 14. Love Love Love for Christmas by Mississippi Crawler Andries D 15. Coventry Carol (Trad. 15th Century) by Robert Killen 16. Away in a Manger by Henry Lowman 17. I Had A Beer With Santa Claus Today in My Lonely Christmas by Big Fat Tom 18. Kickin' the Snow Off My Boots by RTL CBGs 19. Kampusnacht by James Conder 20. Merry Cigar Box Christmas by James O Lunsford 21. Oh Yes It's Christmas by Smilingdog  One of my favorite annual holiday collections of the last few years is "A Cigar Box Nation Christmas". Cigar Box Nation is a place where musicians who build and play instruments out of cigar boxes gather together and compare notes, swap stories, share songs. If you've never turned a cigar box into an instrument, but would like to try it, you'll find plenty of people there more than happy to help you on the journey. Honestly, hang out for a while and you get the feeling that these cigar box musicians and instrument makers are like kids who get to celebrate Christmas every day. And the instruments can range from the simplest you can imagine to concert ready electric guitars (here's a tip for you; if you're making your first one, start with the simpler designs). Since 2009, Cigar Box Nation's denizens have been putting together these Christmas music collections featuring cigar box instruments--for their own enjoyment and the enjoyment of anyone who stops by. They've always been free and they all still are. The music runs the gamut from Bluegrass to Blues to Hard Rock, although this year's set is heavy on Blues. It's amazing what you can do with a cigar box guitar (acoustic or electric) or banjo. Some of these folks are professional musicians and some are just hobbyists, so you get a full range of sound quality (although one basic rule they employ is that you have to be able to hear it; good rule).
Unlike some postings in past years, I've actually had the chance to listen to the "2016 Cigar Box Nation Christmas". This year's collection is a relatively (for them) modest 21 tracks (last year's, in comparison, was 31). You'll find that's just about one song (3 or 4 minutes) too long for a single CD. The members, this year, were pushing each other to submit original songs, so the majority of these tracks are, indeed, as homemade as their instruments. Jim Morris opens the set in style with an original Folk Gospel number (with Celtic overtones), "Waiting For The Wise Men". I actually had to go back and read the discussions to make sure it was original because it sounds so much like all those old Folk carols, I initially thought it had been with us for a couple hundred years. Just a great, great song. My favorites, though...some tracks that truly blew me away...were C# Merle's "Sleekit Santa" and "Silent Night" by Mark Jeghurs. C# Merle's number feaures a Jazz flute playing over a Blues cigar box guitar/bass bed. Of course, I'm a sucker for flute, anyway, but the Jazz-Blues pairing works so much better than you'd imagine it would if someone (like moi) tried to explain it to you. But even "Sleekit Santa" was no match for Mark Jeghurs' Delta Blues "Silent Night". Oh, sure, you think you know "Silent Night", but I guarantee you've never heard this. This "Silent Night" is merely based on the one you know. It is a completely original song--original music (well...Delta Blues), original lyrics. Awesome squared and my pick for the collection's best. "A Cold And Snowy Noght" by CDA Ramirez is a stripped down Progressive Rock tune--another highlight. Eric Denton's "Christmas Wishes" is a wonderful Americana Christmas instrumental that legitimately makes you feel like Christmas. Glenn Kaiser's "Christmas Comin' Round Again" is perfect front porch Blues. I enjoyed Big Fat Tom's contribution, which I'd call Vince Guaraldi inspired Pop. And the one song that bothered me a little was Derek Rose's "Christmasses Long Ago". And it bothered me because it's on the cusp of being a great song, but it needs some collaboration--someone to tighten up the lyrics and music a bit. Do that, record it in a professional studio, and you've got a Jimmie Rodgers Folk Pop hit (the "Honeycomb" dude, not the other one). Of course, you have to remember that most of these folks are not professional songwriters and performers. Some of the music and words are probably very much off the cuff. But these are people having a blast and that always shines through. And, every year, a few of the tunes on "A Cigar Box Nation Christmas" will be among my absolute favorites of the season. Mark Jeghurs' "Silent Night" is going straight into the Stubby's Hall of Fame (or it would if there were one). I'm pretty sure all the old volumes are still available as well, but I don't have links handy (check the Stubby's archives; you'll probably find most of them). Poke around at Cigar Box Nation and you'll find some nice Christmas videos not on this collection. But, first, grab the free download of the "2016 Cigar Box Nation Christmas". |
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