Most of my memories of Christmas are tied to music one way or another. Where some families have Christmas Traditions involving certain foods or games hanging lights or acting out their own nativity scene, ours was always singing together on Christmas Eve. It was the most important part of our celebrating, so when I think about Christmas it's always tied to music and singing with loved ones. I just couldn't wait to make a Christmas record and I, of course, wanted to do it with a big group of friends and loved ones.

Rosie's favorite holiday songs

The ones I loved growing up that really remind me the most of Christmas are some classics records by Bring Crosby, Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra, and Phil Spector, as well as fun Motown Christmas records like the one from the Jackson 5.

"O Come Emmanuel"

I always hated this song actually. It reminded me of old men with bad breath singing it in church, so slow and labored, but after reworking it I came to really love it and I saw the lyrics in a completely new way that was really beautiful to me.

"Christmas Don't Be Late"

This was childhood favorite that always reminds me of the good memories of Christmas from the eyes of a child – very nostalgic. I always loved the melody, but there isn't too much to the song, what with all the talking parts and yelling at ALVIN!...so it seems like it could be expounded upon. We wanted to change the mood a bit and recapture that childlike hope in Christmas. As adults, we see a lot of heartache in people around Christmas too.

"Silent Night"

Like "O Come Emmanuel", this was another classic that everybody knows and can be a bit predictable, so I wanted to try going a different route to perhaps give it a bit of a new life and keep it interesting. I was really pleased with the changes and additions in this arrangement.

"Winter Wonderland" and "Let It Snow"

Duets were always very important to our family around Christmas and most of the songs we sang were in a group or duet, so it was very important to have some of these classic fun songs that remind me of our family hanging around, singing together on Christmas Eve. It was even more special that I was able to sing these versions with my brother Brian.

"Why Can't It Be Christmastime All Year?"

I really wanted a song that sounded like a classic you already know or should know, that was dancy, fun…just a good-times Christmas song about all the fun and excitement that Christmas brings. It is such a happy magical time of year, and I wanted a song that would really capture that fun and excitement.

"Alone At Christmastime"

On the other end of the spectrum, Christmas can unfortunately be a terribly lonely time of year for some folks to struggle through and I wanted to write a song to capture those feelings as well.

"Snow Day"

I wanted to throw in an instrumental as homage to Manheim Steamroller.

"Sheila's Christmas Miracle"

Not only has music been such an important part of my memories of celebrating Christmas, but so have movies and stories. That's why I really wanted to have a sweet little radio story that showed that magic of Christmas and how little things can mean the world to people.

Sheila's Favorite Christmas Songs and Albums:

"Come on Ring Those Bells" by Evie
"O Tannenbaum" by David Hasselhoff
"Jesus Christ Superstar"
"My Heart Will Go On" by Celine Dion
Anything by Manheim Steamroller

Sheila's Favorite Christmas Memory:

"Growing up my parents always threw a big Christmas party at our house for their friends and co-workers, and it was always my big chance to perform for a crowd. My favorite year was when I was 16 I decided to perform a one –woman nativity scene. It was awesome! I'd say the most challenging and rewarding part was making the birth look authentic."

Hello everyone!

Hope you enjoy this Christmas record just as much as I enjoyed making it! As a special gift to Sheila, I made a spot for her on the record, she was so touched she took a trip to the North Pole for research.

Happy early Christmas!


Love,
Rosie, the band, Sheila and Santa too.




A Very Rosie Christmas


Available Now!

iTunes

Amazon

Hello everyone!



Chock full of eggnog and grand spirits, Rosie, alongside her husband Jeff Shoop and longtime producer Josh Myers, called upon friends (Damien Jurado), family (Rosie's brother Brian "BT" Thomas,) and alter egos (the simply hilarious Sheila Saputo) to capture all the warmth and exuberance of the holiday season for everyone to share.

A Very Rosie Christmas which is available on November 4th, is a collection of holiday favorites such as "Christmastime Is Here", "O Come Emmanuel", and "Winter Wonderland". Rosie has added the playful original "Why Can't It Be Christmastime All Year?" (you can hear this now on myspace,) and the Prairie Home Companion style radio sketch "Sheila's Christmas Miracle".

Rosie and her merry band of fellow friends and musicians will be heading out on her very first holiday tour starting in Philadelphia and ending in Seattle. See below for all the dates as well as a special note from Rosie...





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Really looking forward to seeing you on my very first Christmas tour! I will be on the road with a full band including my brother Brian Thomas, Josh Myers, Andrew Rudd and my fella Jeffrey Shoop! My friend Sheila Saputo will be coming along too, opening the shows every night for us with her gift of Christmas cheer! It's always fun having the band along, especially my brother and Mr. Shoop. There's nothing better that I can think of than playing music with family, and friends of course too. See you soon!



Hope you're enjoying the fall..don't the leaves smell nice? mmm..mmm...mmm



-Ros




Tour Dates



November 30 Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe tickets



December 1 Vienna, VA @ Jammin Java tickets



December 2 New York, NY @ The Living Room (tickets on sale soon)



December 3 Brooklyn, NY @ The Bell House (tickets on sale soon)



December 5 Grand Rapids, MI @ Calvin Collegetickets



December 6 Pontiac, MI @ Crofoot tickets



December 7 Chicago, IL @ Schuba's tickets



December 9 Hollywood, CA @ Hotel Cafe tickets



December 10 San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill tickets



December 13 Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge (tickets on sale soon)



December 14 Seattle, WA @ Town Hall (tickets on sale soon)

Just wanted all of my lovely friends to know that i am going to be a bride! I can't tell you how happy i feel to have finally found someone to share my life with. I was ready to adopt 14 cats and 10 children and then Mr. Shoop came along. I can't give away too much about the wedding plans, but i will tell you this; a parade is involved... and a marching band too of course and i will be wearing my mommy's dress! Love to you, Rosie T!

Working on a Christmas record in June....pretty hilarious! If all goes well, and we can sweat it out, we'll have it available in time for this holiday season!

Rosie is thrilled to have been invited out for a short run of dates with the wonderful Teddy Thompson this spring. We hope you can join them for what is sure to be a special night together.

March 25 - Triple Door - Seattle, WA
March 26 - Doug Fir Lounge - Portland, OR
March 28 - Great American Music Hall - San Francisco, CA
March 29 - Troubadour - West Hollywood, CA

Rosie has a song on the new For The Kids III compilation. She sings a duet with Damien Jurado called "Small As Me". Other artists on the album are: Moby, Of Montreal, Barenaked Ladies, O.A.R. The Format and more! A portion of the proceeds from sales of the album will go to VH1's Save The Music Foundation.

Dear Rosie fans,

We regret to inform you that due to unforeseen circumstances, Rosie Thomas won't be able to appear at either the Greenbelt festival in the UK or Bumbershoot in Seattle in the coming weeks.

She will, however, be back on the road in October, but as a headliner and supporting Over The Rhine.

We'll see you all later this fall...

Best,

Team Rosie

If you're in NYC this Thursday, May 10th, you're in for a treat. Barnes & Noble has invited Rosie to join in this months "Upstairs At The Square" series, held at the Union Square Barnes & Noble in Manhattan (33 East 17th St. at Union Square). Rosie will be joined by Journalist Katherine Lanpher and French literary sensation Anna Gavalda for this unique event. It all kicks off at 7:00 PM sharp, so come by and join us.



Rosie will also be on WFUV earlier that morning...and from NYC, she'll be heading to Europe for a series of shows in Holland and Scandinavia, before wrapping things up with a show in Paris and London. Check out a complete list of dates here.