Every year around this time we are inundated with Christmas music here at Bluegrass Today. We won’t be sharing any of it for a few more weeks, but be assured, it’s coming. It seems that bluegrass folks really love Christmas time, and that includes the artists, songwriters, and record labels that create it.
But we don’t get much in the way of Thanksgiving-themed projects, and that is a bit odd when you think about it. Other than those who harbor a strong dislike for their family, most people list the Thanksgiving holiday weekend as their favorite throughout the year. Good food, family and friends, and plenty of football… what’s not to like?
This year, Colorado fiddle champion Vi Wickam has created a nine-track Thanksgiving album, titled, appropriately enough, The Thanksgiving Album. His idea was to contact his many friends in the singer/songwriter community, and have them contribute new songs that celebrate different aspects of this beloved holiday. Just released last week, the album includes nine tracks, eight new songs plus Vi’s contribution, a triple fiddle cut of Turkey in the Straw, with Dennis Ludiker and Luke Bulla.
Wickam described the genesis of this effort.
“This album was born from a conversation with my wife, Christina. We were talking about how much we love Thanksgiving. Not just the food (yes, also the food), but the togetherness. The gratitude. The laughter. The connection. And we realized – the world needs more Thanksgiving music!
So, we decided to change that.
In February, I invited nine amazing songwriter friends – musicians I’ve long admired – to collaborate on an album that would speak of gratitude, gathering, and giving thanks. What came back was magical: stories of homecomings, awkward relatives, kitchen chaos, heartfelt toasts, old wounds, new hope… and gratitude running through it all.
At its core, this album is about connection. Gratitude. Welcome. Healing. The things that bring people to the table–and keep them coming back year after year.”
Vi wrote and sings the opening number, Another Fine Day for Thanksgiving, with Celtic music accompaniment. Mostly, we hear Wickam on fiddle and providing harmony vocals. Fellow fiddler Luke Bulla also provides a song, Each New Day, which demonstrates his facility in the bluegrass idiom as a singer and player.
Other tracks incorporate a swing sound, like I’m At Home which features Jessie Andra Smith as singer and songwriter, while Welcome At The Table, is more of a pop country song with an uplifting story about a boy accidentally invited to Thanksgiving dinner when grandma texted a wrong number. But they had him for dinner all the same, and the family has welcomed him now as one of their own.
The Thanksgiving Album isn’t a bluegrass record, though many of the tracks fit closely under the roots umbrella. After all, not all of us have families that want to hear a steady diet of Goins Brothers or Vern & Ray at holiday gatherings. Still it’s good, heartwarming music which everyone can enjoy during the start of the holiday season.
You can get this record online from popular download and streaming services, or on CD, vinyl, or download directly from Wickam’s web site.
