5 Cozy Acoustic Tracks to Ease Into the Holiday Season
The holiday season, no matter what you celebrate, is also the perfect time to listen to music. Whether it’s the old classics, jazz, metal, rock, or acoustic, there’s plenty of music to go around. Right now, we’ll focus on the beauty of acoustic music. This type of music is designed to be relaxing, mellow, and often it’s ideal background music. However, we do want to showcase some unique acoustic songs that put a bright spotlight on this mellow genre.
5 Acoustic Songs Perfect for the Holiday Season Celebrating
We just can’t stay away from those unusual songs. These amazing artists have blended a traditional tune with a modern twist. We’ve somehow managed to find the best songs out there that can grace your stereo system. These songs all have innovative arrangements. Your guests (and you) will absolutely love them – and no doubt they’ll be asking who the musician is!
“The Christmas Song” by Steve Lukather
Lukather, best known for being the guitarist for Toto, put out an amazing Christmas album. He called it (yep…) “Santamental” – and it’s chock full of good hits. Besides the festive song we have here, “Winter Wonderland” and “Carol of the Bells” are notable. Axe masters Eddie Van Halen and Slash make great guest guitar cameos. It’s wonderful holiday season music.
“God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” by Pentatonix
You can’t think of Christmas music without thinking of the Pentatonix. This a cappella group, known for its creative and rhythmic renditions of popular pieces, has put out numerous Christmas songs. Extraordinarily capable singers, these five fantastic vocalists have interwoven melodies and harmonies, releasing an enjoyable acoustic version of “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen.”
“Jingle Bell Rock” by Billy Idol
Yes, you read that right. Billy Idol, the punkish spiky-haired Rock God himself, has a song on this list! Who’d have thought? Back in 2006, Billy Idol released a Christmas music album – and this song is a good one. Yep, it’s not all acoustic, but in true Dick Dale style/blues twang, the singer showcases his beautiful baritone voice. Musical support is provided by longtime guitarist Steve Stevens.
“Hallelujah” by Mike Dawes & Edward Ong
Accomplished fingerstyle guitarist Mike Dawes is actually holding back here in what he can really do. “Hallelujah,” the beautiful song, which has had countless interpretations by multiple artists, is now set to a stunning acoustic guitar treatment. Edward Ong plays off Dawes, rounding out this emotional piece. It perfectly captures the powerfully stoic holiday mood.
“Carol of the Bells/We Three Kings” Medley by Scott Bradlee of Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox
Scott Bradlee started off as a jazz pianist, and somewhere along the way, he got a phenomenal idea to remake songs in both big band and jazz styles. Nice! We see him here without his band, Postmodern Jukebox, combining two traditional Christmas tunes. Actually, let’s just go ahead and say it: all of his incredible band’s holiday season music is definitely worth a listen. They’re so talented!
A Couple Lingering Notes
Music during the holiday season can either evoke a ton of emotion or be the perfect complement to your busy schedule. You don’t always need the power riffs of Trans-Siberian Orchestra (though they do rock!). Acoustic music, albeit often used as background noise, is something you can play with. You can easily tweak it to be a “pick me up,” and it can also be an interesting conversation starter.
