Eric Clapton is releasing a Christmas album
Subscribe
X

Subscribe to Mixdown Magazine

Eric Clapton is releasing a Christmas album

Largely comprised of covers of popular Christmas carols and hymns, Clapton’s Happy Xmas is set to feature one original ditty, ‘For Love On Christmas Day,’ as well as a tribute to the late Swedish EDM maestro Avicii in the form of ‘Jingle Bells (In Memory of Avicii)’.

 

Speaking to Billboard, Clapton discussed how the album presents a bluesy twist on the traditional forms of the tunes, as well as the challenges he encountered when re-interpreting the classic carols into his own signature style.

 

“I had in my head that these holiday songs could be done with a slight blues tinge, and I started to figure out how to play the blues lines in between the vocals,” he said. “I got it down and one of the most identifiable songs on the album, the one that became the foundational style, is ‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’.”

 

Clapton is also credited as co-producer of Happy Xmas in conjunction with Simon Climie, and his hand-drawn portrait of Santa Claus features as the album’s cover art. Check out the tracklist below, and make sure to grab a copy to chuck in your old man’s stocking when Happy Xmas hits shelves later in October.

 

 

 

Eric Clapton – Happy Xmas 

1. ‘White Christmas’
2. ‘Away in a Manger (Once In Royal David’s City)’
3. ‘For Love on Christmas Day’
4. ‘Everyday Will Be Like a Holiday’
5. ‘Christmas Tears’
6. ‘Home for the Holidays’
7. ‘Jingle Bells (In Memory of Avicii)’
8. ‘Christmas in My Hometown’
9. ‘It’s Christmas’
10. ‘Sentimental Moments’
11. ‘Lonesome Christmas’
12. ‘Silent Night’
13. ‘Merry Christmas Baby’
14. ‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’

 

Feature image via YouTube.