SKip Ewing

Some of Skip Ewing’s best ideas happen on stage. Though revered as one of the best country songwriters of his generation, there’s a special magic that takes place when the engaging entertainer connects with a live audience and that’s the spark that led to his latest project Skip Ewing - Christmas.

“I’ve had some songs that I’ve wanted to record for Christmas for years, and then last year I’d been playing some Christmas shows and come up with a couple of interesting combinations,” says Ewing, who credits his wife, Linda, for encouraging him to capture what was happening on stage with a new album. “I can thank my wife for the most wonderful things. Similarly to what happened with the recent Wyoming album, after she heard me sing ‘Whenever A Child Is Born’ at one of the Christmas shows she said, ‘You’ve got to record that! It’s time.’”

The result is an engaging new Christmas collection that envelops a variety of musical and emotional territory. Produced by Kyle Lehning and Skip Ewing, the same creative engine behind Ewing's acclaimed solo effort Wyoming, the seven-track Christmas collection includes poignant piano ballads ("Whenever a Child is Born"), jaunty love songs ("Mr. Snowman"), an inventive take on “’Twas The Night Before Christmas” titled "Better Watch Out,” while "I’ll Be Home (An American Christmas)" honors the country's military families by intermingling the bittersweet "I’ll Be Home For Christmas" with the patriotic "America the Beautiful."

“Back before Covid, I was doing Christmas shows every year. Sometimes I’d mess with ideas, taking a song and blending it with something else,” he says. “I was thinking about ‘I’ll Be Home for Christmas’ and the person who is singing ‘I’ll Be Home for Christmas’ obviously is not home. Everyone can fill in their own space, but I thought of military families, service men and women wanting to come back to America. I realized that the melody of ‘America The Beautiful’ and ‘I’ll Be Home for Christmas’ were complimentary and journeyed together well.” Ewing’s vision takes a beloved Christmas classic and imbues it with an extra layer of emotional currency that makes the song feel brand new. Another “cover” on the album is a Skip Ewing original that was first recorded by Kenny Chesney. “Just a Kid” was featured on Chesney’s 2003 album All I Want for Christmas is a Real Good Tan. Here Ewing puts his indelible stamp on another modern classic. “Kent Blazy and I wrote that together. Kent and I have been true friends, more than just writing partners. We got into a conversation that led us to the path of that song,” he says. “When Jesus was born, the Pharisees said he couldn’t possibly be King because he was just a kid. And then when Jesus is speaking, after we know he’s going to be crucified, he’s speaking to his father and saying, ‘I’m just a kid’ comparatively and that speaks to his humility.”

Tender and bittersweet, “Christmas Carol,” is the story of an orphan girl looking for a home.  Ewing first record the song on his acclaimed 1995 Christmas album Following Yonder Star. “Don Sampson and I wrote ‘Christmas Carol’ and I remember us just saying, ‘What if Carol was actually a little girl?’ We thought through the story about her being born on Christmas day and being orphaned. We don’t know an actual Christmas Carol, but we know stories that are like that and we know children who are orphaned and need a home. I think Christmas time brings out such generosity, not just generosity from resources, but generosity of spirit and of heart. It reminds us of things that are truly important and we tried to bring some warmth to something that could be sad, but hopefully it will ultimately make you smile.”

One of the most compelling songs on the album is the tender ballad “Whenever a Child is Born.” “I wrote it several years ago with Aaron Barker who is just a wonderful soul. He’s written a lot of really beautiful country songs. I remember saying, ‘Will you roll with me on something? I have an idea,’” Ewing recalls. “I just remember us being in spiritual agreement that God is there whenever a child is born, and it became universal to us.”

Ewing is no stranger to writing great Christmas songs. He penned “It Wasn’t His Child,” a tender ode to Jesus’ earthly father Joseph that has been recorded multiple times including covers by Trisha Yearwood, Sawyer Brown and Tim McGraw. Ewing has carved out a songwriting career that is legendary. He has had songs recorded by Willie Nelson, Keb Mo, George Strait, Zac Brown Band, Keith Urban and others. He’s penned such hits as Brian White’s “I’m Not Supposed to Love You Anymore,” “Rebecca Lynn,” and “Someone Else’s Star,” Diamond Rio’s “I Believe,” Kenny Chesney’s “You Had Me From Hello” and Collin Raye’s “Love, Me.”

Ewing is also a gifted vocalist and a performer that knows how to hold an audience in the palm of his hand. Award-winning producer Kyle Lehning, who co-produced Ewing’s acclaimed 2020 album Wyoming, worked with him again on the new Christmas collection and is complimentary of Ewing’s creative gifts. “It’s the trifecta. It’s just great fun to get to work on fabulous music with somebody who can really sing, who can really write and really play,” says Lehning, a Nashville legend, who has worked with Dan Seals, George Jones, Bobby Bare, Restless Heart and Randy Travis. “I’ve known Skip for a long time, and I’ve been lucky enough to have produced a number of songs that he’s written and had great success with them. Skip is a wonderful songwriter, but he’s a great singer and a great musician. He does everything really, really well and he’s very focused. Although he’s significantly younger than I am, we both have the same influences and same references when we talk about music, so it’s a real easy working relationship and I have enormous respect for his opinion. He’s got big ears and a good heart and it’s great fun.”

In recording the new album Ewing and Lehning enlisted some of Nashville’s legendary session musicians, including bassist Larry Paxton, drummer Eddie Bayers, guitarist Brent Mason and Steve Nathan on piano. Acclaimed arranger Bergen White handled the strings and orchestral work on the album. The result is a lush tapestry filled with Christmas spirit and lots of heart.

“Christmas time is musically rich. That’s how it feels to me,” says Ewing, who currently lives in Wyoming, but traveled to Nashville to record. “Everyone who celebrates Christmas will agree there’s a feeling in the air that time of year and it’s a good feeling. I think we all become more aware of some parts of our lives and other’s lives. Recording a Christmas album to offer new music that we also hope is musically rich… I feel fortunate and privileged to be able to do that. I draw from whatever artistic well I have with the intention of reaching the hearts of other humans on the planet. I’m excited to see what happens. I want to make music that is lasting and meaningful and be able to do that until I can’t do it anymore.”