When pianist and composer Jeremy Rodriguez describes his new EP, Christmas, Come On!, he admits it’s eclectic, but that’s part of its charm.
“It’s a soft-focus Polaroid of how Christmas feels to me right now.”
Christmas, Come On! combines cinematic instrumental arrangements of familiar carols with nostalgia-laden original songs recorded by vocalists Wendy Sightler Ferguson and Jason Davidson. A
dd to that a diverse collection of musicians from around the world, and you get a holiday album that will fit on nearly any Christmas playlist. The project grew from Rodriguez’s childhood love of CCM and instrumental music—a house filled with Christmas offerings from 4HIM, Larnelle Harris, First Call, Michael W. Smith, and Mannheim Steamroller. Other influences include David Foster’s Symphony Sessions, Jim Brickman, and Yanni. One album touched him in particular: a collection called Jesus, the Best Gift of All. Rodriguez said, “My uncle gave me the copy. It was the first Christmas without my grandmother. Just listening to those songs in the Christmas light was bittersweet. Those songs meant so much to me that I played the cassette tape every single year. And that’s the feeling I tried to capture on this EP.”
Christmas, Come On! opens with the title track, a jazz-infused tune featuring Dove Award nominee Jason Davidson. Written by Rodriguez, Davidson, and Dove Award Winner Alisen Wells, “Christmas, Come On!” started as a pitch for Harry Connick, Jr. The piano, drums, and bass accompaniment echoes classic holiday albums by Vince Guaraldi, Diana Krall, and Ramsey Lewis. The second track, “I Wonder as I Wander,” was the first arrangement Rodriguez created for the album. He said, “I wanted to take that haunting Appalachian melody and see if I could convey the lyric without having someone sing it.” It features Rodriguez’s piano against world percussion, cello, and an oud—a fretless, short-necked Arabian lute. For the third track, Rodriguez chose “O Holy Night.” He said, “It almost didn’t make the project. I was scared of ruining my favorite Christmas song! I didn’t want to create something that sounded like every other version I’d ever heard.” But he found a unique take on the familiar melody by sharing the spotlight with harp, cello, and soprano saxophone.
“Peace on Earth” is an original, born during a difficult Christmas season. “I felt depressed after watching the news and thinking about the world my kids would inherit. I went to the piano and played a few measures of ‘Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,’ then started singing, ‘Peace on Earth—when will there be peace on Earth?’”
He sent the song idea to his friend and collaborator, Wendy Sightler Ferguson. She took the song’s original intent and shifted it in a brighter, more hopeful direction. It took them several years to complete it, and this recording brings it to life with Ferguson’s strong, emotional vocal performance backed by cello and Rodriguez’s piano. The EP closes with a simple solo piano rendition of “Silent Night.” Rodriguez said, “I wanted it to feel like the night after Christmas morning—after you unwrap the gifts and you’re just sitting together with your family. A holy, resounding, ‘amen.’”
Beyond “Christmas, Come On!”, Rodriguez has been growing his influence as a songwriter. “Peace on Earth” originally appeared on Back Porch Christmas, the fourth solo offering from Doug Anderson (baritone from Ernie Haase & Signature Sound and Cana’s Voice). Rodriguez’s song “Crimson,” written with Alisen Wells and multi-Dove Award winner Jeff Bumgardner, was recorded by First Baptist Church - North Augusta. And The Erwins’ recording of “Still Telling My Story,” a song Rodriguez co-wrote with Dove nominee Kevin Winebarger, Wendy Sightler Ferguson, and Dove nominee Riley Harrison Clark, recently topped at number three on the Singing News Power 50 and number one on AFFIRM Southern Gospel Radio. Christmas, Come On!, the complete five-song EP, is available on all streaming platforms. Learn more at jeremyrodriguez.bandcamp.com.
