AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |
Back to Blog
Song christmas memories12/18/2023 ![]() ![]() “I think everything I write comes from nostalgic moments, whether it’s traces of a song or something like ‘No Erasin’ (2018),” says Perry. Most of the songs he’s written resided from somewhere in his past first. I was raised by my grandparents because my mother had to go to work, so I think that gave me a more experienced upbringing.”Įverything has centered around experience for Perry. “Their experience of being alive calls on every damn thing they tell you. “When you’re able to be around your grandparents, they’re giving you a different generational instruction that your parents are not old enough to give you,” he says. And when you pulled out some potato chips and you started eating that, you’re not going to stop.īeing raised mostly by his grandparents was life-altering for Perry, something that stuck with him beyond holiday nostalgia. ![]() Then she would take two cans of minced clams and put them in there, and it would be this amazing onion, clam dip. She would take French onion soup mix and throw that in there with a little tabasco. She would get sour cream and Philadelphia Cream Cheese and mix them together, chop up green chives, and put it in there. “This is cooking with Steve by the way,” adds Perry, who shares a special recipe his grandmother always made, and one he still makes to this day: ![]() She would have this kitchen table, and because it was Portuguese household, she would have a tablecloth with a doily over the table and clear plastic over that, so that was our big kitchen table.”Įvery square inch of the table was filled to the brim that she would constantly have to rearrange plates to make room for things. “I would love to have a tasting creation experience of cooking that gives a portal to the original tastes that I’m talking about, meaning my grandmother’s cooking was unbelievable. “This is the problem, I’ve not been able to recreate a portal of tastes like that once was,” says Perry. When remembering one of his favorite Christmas memories, Perry jokes that it typically centers around food. Perry remembers the poignant words of one of his favorite singers, the late Levi Stubbs, lead vocalist of the Four Tops-and the baritone voice of carnivorous plant Audrey II in the 1986 film Little Shop of Horrors-once shared with him about the power of a song. That’s the gift of music, Christmas in particular, says Perry, and its ability to transport you to those moments again. It brought me back to growing up in my grandmother’s house, and she’s cooking turkey, and there’s a tree in the corner with tinsel on it-nobody puts tinsel on trees anymore, but I love it.” “When I was a child, these are the ones that meant the most to me, that had Christmas trees on my mind,” shares Perry. Recollecting the smells, the sights, and sounds of his childhood Christmases, for Perry, who grew up in California with a working mother and spent most of his time at his grandmother’s home since his parents had split, choosing the eight songs on The Season was simple because they were part of the soundtrack of those days. On “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” Perry adds a subtle twist with lyrics of oh, I want to be home with you… beside you but remained mostly faithful throughout the eight tracks. He adds, “To this day, they still play the original Nat King Cole version of ‘The Christmas Song.’ They’ll play the Bing Crosby version of ‘I’ll Be Home for Christmas,’ or Ella Fitzgerald’s ‘What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve.’ Although they have been re-recorded by everybody, those are the definitive versions and those versions are not new, so I wanted to be very careful to pay reverence to them and not step out too much.” “They came to me with such a reverence that there were times I wasn’t sure if I should even try to sing the songs because they’re so timelessly charged with the original emotion.” “Each one of them had a different requirement,” says Perry. Offering more jazz than standard renditions of “The Christmas Song,” “I’ll Be Home For Christmas,” “Winter Wonderland,” “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town,” “Silver Bells,” and “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas,” Perry also reminisces on the excitement of the New Year with a tender version of “Auld Lang Syne” and jazzier “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve.” ![]()
0 Comments
Read More
Leave a Reply. |