Thanks For The Music

"No matter how long I live in California, Christmas always means winter in Chicago and the often bitter wind blowing off the lake." - Jim Silvers An apropos sentiment from an artist who regularly goes by the name Windy City Jim. It's also an honest notion to chew on when first taking in CMH Records' recent rediscovery and release of "Wait 'til Next Year" and "Streets of Christmas." Silvers' two songs (recorded over 15 years ago, but heretofore unreleased by the label) are exceptional alternatives to the usual holiday sentiment and fare (from an artist who won "The Gong Show" in 1977 here).

"Wait 'til Next Year" is a mid-tempo honky-tonk number that spins a boozy little yarn about drinking away the holiday alongside the like-minded in a Windy City watering hole. The B-side "Streets of Christmas" is a melancholy country ditty that juxtaposes Silvers' fond remembrances of his childhood holidays spent in Chicago with his vision of a more contemporaneous Christmas season overwrought with greed and consumption. These ain't exactly chipper, but then again neither were Dickens or Frank Capra when you get right down to it.

Since Jim Silvers wrote the songs, it's no surprise that he takes the lead on vocals and featured guitar. However, Silvers' backing band on the tracks include some of the best players in all of country and roots music, like Herb Pedersen, Brantley Kearns and Kenny Blackwell; the list of great records these guys have played on is far too long to recount. The tracks were recorded and engineered by Andrew Bush at Grandma's Warehouse, where everyone from Jimmy Webb to Peter Case to The Hi-Fi Honey Drops have cut records.

If you're looking for something a little croony, a little country, and a whole lot of different to spin during the holiday season, you can't do much better than the one-two punch of Jim Silvers' "Wait 'til Next Year" and "Streets of Christmas."