Christmas is coming soon, and so is another episode of Acoustic Blend! This month we are getting into the Christmas spirit with some classics, and if you’re not feeling festive just yet (rain in the Midwest, anyone?) then I hope that’ll change by the end of the hour. We’ll start things off with the opening track from A Charlie Brown Christmas.
Ben Rector will make an appearance (like last month), and we’ll also hear some Dean Martin and Ella Fitzgerald. One of the great things about Christmas music is that seemingly everyone has recorded a holiday album. There’s so much variety! Hopefully you’ll find something new that suits your fancy this month and becomes a favorite for years to come. Speaking of which, the album below has been a favorite of mine the past few years.
After our first couple sets, we’ll begin exploring the mystery of Advent, which means “coming” or “arrival.” The Message has the prophet Isaiah saying it this way:
“The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light.
For those who lived in a land of deep shadows—
light! sunbursts of light!”
I read those opening lines of Isaiah chapter 9 and wonder what it would really be like to live in a land of shadows and then see sunbursts of light. Overwhelming? Maybe. Unbelievable? Yeah, probably. But most of all? Hopeful.
In my own daily wandering, I need to see light burst forth anew and remember the stories of Jesus coming and walking the earth. Which reminds me… I have really enjoyed The Chosen for its very human picture of Jesus, and I’m psyched that their Christmas special is still in theaters for another week! Highly recommend.
We’ll hear some of my favorite tunes from Josh Garrels and Jess Ray, and pause for a reading of the poem “O Emmanuel” by Malcolm Guite (thanks to Bryan for the recommendation). We’ll close the hour with the hopeful song “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day,” which was written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow during dark times not unlike our own.
Acoustic Blend airs Saturday, December 11 at 8pm EST on WBAA AM 920 in Lafayette / West Lafayette, and streaming live on wbaa.org. You can view the full playlist at barrett.substack.com once the show airs. ‘Til next month!