The band shares “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” ahead of the album’s release
Two-time Grammy-winning band Old Crow Medicine Show is bringing out the jingle bells early this year, announcing the November 21st release of OCMS Xmas via Hartland Records. Featuring just two covers and 11 originals, the band’s first holiday album is decorated with seasonal spirit and string-band stomp, shining new light on their chart-topping version of American roots music.
Along with the announcement, Old Crow honors John Lennon’s birthday with a timely take on his and Yoko Ono’s global peace anthem “Happy Xmas (War Is Over).” The song is stacked with choral harmonies from the children of the Episcopal School of Nashville, the East Nashville-based school founded by frontman Ketch Secor.
“Of all the Christmas songs the radio stations drench us with as soon as the Thanksgiving feast turns to leftovers, there is only one I never tire of hearing. John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s message of peace, unity, love and understanding makes ‘Happy Xmas (War is Over)’ an anthem all the world over. Some fifty years after the kids from The Harlem Community Choir lent their voices to this amazing track, the Old Crows gathered the Purple Martin Choir around a microphone in the basement of Episcopal School of Nashville, the school I started, to join us on this revered song celebrating the holiday which honors the Prince of Peace’s birth. Altogether, with young and old singing as one, Old Crow Medicine Show stands up with the peacemakers around the globe, pushing those in power to put an end to war,” Secor says.
Old Crow Medicine Show isn’t just reinterpreting their favorite yuletide standards; they’re adding new songs to the canon and telling fresh stories, too. From barn-burners like “December 26” (which marks the songwriting debut of longtime band member Morgan Jahnig) to the Zydeco-flavored “All About A Baby” and a tribute to New England winters called “North By Northeast,” OCMS Xmas upholds Old Crow’s combination of the timely with the timelessness. The album also features a few classics, including a cover of “Holly Jolly Christmas” with horns from the Tennessee State University ensemble Brassville, and a rowdy version of the Appalachian standard “Breakin’ Up Xmas,” recorded live in the band’s East Nashville headquarters, Hartland Studio.
“We’re in the joy business,” says Secor. “From the very start, a lot of the virtues of Christmas — the revelry, the sing-alongs, the happiness — have been present in our show.” Supported by the band’s first-ever “Holiday Hootenanny” tour, the album just might be the start of a new tradition itself: a celebration of the seasonal sounds, shared joy, and holiday rituals that bring us all together.
This is the latest release from Old Crow Medicine Show, who celebrated their 25th anniversary as a band with the 2023 Grammy-nominated album Jubilee. Last year, the group performed an NPR Tiny Desk Concert and dropped the first-ever vinyl release of their debut album O.C.M.S., remastered from the original analog tapes by its original producer David Rawlings. This summer, Ketch Secor released his first solo album, Story The Crow Told Me, and made his debut as the new host of the long-running travel and culture series Tennessee Crossroads.
Old Crow Medicine Show has also announced support for the band’s annual New Year’s Eve performances at The Ryman Auditorium, with The 502s and AJ Lee and Blue Summit on Tuesday, December 30th, and Shovels & Rope and The Creekers on Wednesday, December 31st.
1. Breakin’ Up Xmas
2. Holly Jolly Christmas featuring Brassville
3. Jolly Man
4. North By Northeast
5. Corn Whiskey Christmas
6. Happy Xmas (War Is Over)
7. All About A Baby
8. Jinglin’ Jack Guy
9. Store-Bought Christmas
10. December 26
11. Krampus Night
12. Grandpa’s Gone
13. Bethlehem, PA
