One of the hardest working artists in the business, Jake Vaadeland, is back with more music before the year is out, and this time he’s getting all holly and jolly. Goodness Gracious it’s Christmas! is a six-song EP of Christmas classics, but with Vaadeland and The Sturgeon River Boys’ signature bluegrass rockabilly twist that will get even the Grinchiest amongst us tapping their toes. Not only does Jake have a new EP, it also comes with its own tour across Canada, which he was preparing for when we spoke. But don’t worry if Canada is a bit far and you don’t want to miss out, as four of the songs from the EP are live recordings from shows from this time last year and capture the magic of the performance and the energy from the crowd, so you too can enjoy it from whatever corner of the world you’re in.
The last time I saw Jake was in September when he and The Sturgeon River Boys played at Bush Hall, London, a historic venue that suited the boys’ vintage styles. “That was one of my favourites,” he smiles. “I was kind of blown away by how that crowd was for us.” Even before the boys started playing it felt as though you had stepped back in time with almost everyone in their Western finery from the 40s and 50s. Though it started off seated, by the end of the night everyone was up on their feet having a hoot and holler. “It was kind of nice that there were seats, but it wasn’t strict, you could get up and whatever, and that’s the whole point of our shows I think is to have a good time.
“I just come across a video the other day of [Bush Hall] and it’s a good reminder of how well we can play when we’ve got an audience like that,” he says. “And we’re just getting back into it now, so seeing that was cheerful.”
We spoke just a couple of days before his Goodness Gracious it’s Christmas! tour began and he was getting ready for its production day. “It’s a little different than our usual show and it’s a little more, well not that our regular shows aren’t theatrical as it is, but there’s just more to it,” he kept it schtum on what these theatrics would be, although he did mention that he will be bringing his old Christmas tree. He also mentioned that this tour will not be exclusive to just Christmas songs and will still play their originals. “Sometimes I wonder do we play these songs too much, people will get sick of them. But then I thought, well if I was going to see a group and I bought a ticket and they didn’t play some of these songs that I know, I’d feel a little disappointed.”
Vaadeland’s 22 date Christmas tour will see him playing all over Canada, but it might be his first show that will be his most special and memorable, as it’s in his hometown. When we spoke, he hadn’t heard if it was sold out yet but knew it was going to be packed as “the town is going nuts about it.” The feeling was mutual as Jake was looking forward to playing for his home crowd. “I haven’t actually played since I’ve been doing this, I don’t think we have really played here for the people and the community, so it’ll be really nice to just stop here and show appreciation to them, at least to me for how good they’ve been to me here.”
Christmas in Jake’s hometown sounds like a Christmas card. All the family together at the farmhouse, collecting wood for the furnace, and snow so deep that horses and sleighs are the best mode of transportation. You can almost hear Bing Crosby singing about it. Christmas in his hometown also had an influence on the EP with ‘Beautiful Star of Bethlehem’, a song Jake would hear be sung at the country church when he was a child. “There was a song that we used to sing around this time in the little country church I used to go to when I was a good boy you know,” he smiles. “And it was ‘Beautiful Star of Bethlehem,’ and that’s not a song that everybody just knows like a lot of the other songs, so I really wanted to record that because it is a sentimental song to me, my childhood, but nobody else really knows it so I wanted to put that out.”
With a Christmas EP and tour, one would assume Jake Vaadeland absolutely loves Christmas. “I do, I don’t go nuts, I like it more than my father does,” he laughs. “I do like it but I’m not crazy about it either, like there comes a time when it’s time for the tree to come down.” However, considering he also told me about decorating his house with red and green candles, a couple of nutcrackers and a tree, I think he might have been downplaying his love of Christmas just a little bit…
Speaking of Christmas trees, it was still November when we spoke and Jake had already decorated his, to the sounds of Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra on the record player, of course. For those of you who are nosy like me, Jakes tree sounds as fabulous and picture perfect as you’d expect. White and coloured lights, decorations he had made with his mother when he was small, family pictures, candy canes and fun ornaments like Santa playing guitar and a snowman playing the banjo. “The tree is just decorated with all the kinds of things of joy and memories and things to make you happy because that’s what it is about.”
Jake also adds his own theme to the tree: his nativity scene sits underneath it. “I never really understood… You know you bring a tree into the house, put a bunch of stuff in it and it’s got a star on it, what’s that about?” he says. “So I thought, well maybe that star is the star of Bethlehem, and the tree is when you look at it it makes you feel happy and lots of joy, the light of the world maybe, and so I like to put the nativity scene under the tree and have the star at the top because then from any point of the room you see the star and that leads you to Jesus, and just reminds me that that’s what Christmas is, it’s the birth of love and forgiveness and happiness.”
You cannot chat with Jake Vaadeland without talking about suits, so imagine my shock when he told me that he’s been too busy to get hold of a Christmas suit. “I would really prefer Christmas theme so, maybe with Christmas bells on the lapels or just something cheesy like that, or even with gold up on the lapel insides. I’d like to maybe look into that for next year,” he reassures me. “But regardless of what I decide, everyone will be dressed up for work, that’s for sure.”
For those of you who will be attendance of the remaining Goodness Gracious it’s Christmas! shows, Jake is looking forward to seeing you there. “I’m just excited about the Christmas tour, anybody here or there who’s going to be there that wants to join in and see it, you can be assured it’ll be a night to remember.” And for us who can’t be there, we can at least dress up in our best Westernwear, crack the speakers out, play the EP loud and be there in Christmas spirit.
Goodness Gracious it’s Christmas! by Jake Vaadeland is out now and ready to be played while you wrap your presents.
