Must Be Christmas

Album: Single Release Only (2014)
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Songfacts®:

  • The Band of Merrymakers is a rotating-cast Yuletide supergroup. The collective was established by songwriter Sam Hollander and Better Than Ezra's Kevin Griffin in 2014 with the philanthropic goal of raising awareness and donations for non-profit organizations and charities. It came to be when the pair were discussing where the holiday musical philanthropy had gone such as Band Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas?" and the A Very Special Christmas compilation albums.
  • This song was recorded by Griffin with Charles Kelley of Lady Antebellum, Tyler Glenn of Neon Trees, Fitz of Fitz & the Tantrums, Nick Hexum of 311, Smallpools, The Mowgli's, 3OH!3, Sinclair, and The Honeymoons. "Sam Hollander is one of my favorite people in the business," said Tyler Glenn,. "I thought this song that he wrote with Kevin Griffin was really fun and also expressed what the holidays are about for a lot of people."
  • A portion of the proceeds of the song went to MusiCares, a foundation which was originally established to provide emergency financial assistance and addiction recovery resources to members of the music community.
  • A video was released to accompany the song. "When we were filming that day in Nashville, unbeknownst to us the street was shut down for a wine festival that evening," Griffin recalled to Billboard magazine. "It ended up being a great look for us parading down the street. Folks joined us on the street for an impromptu dance party! The wine might have had a little to do with it."

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