out & about by Martha Bassett
When you think about Christmas, it’s hard to separate the holiday from the music. Whether you like a jazzy rendition of “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” George Michael singing “Last Christmas,” or a traditional “O Holy Night,” the radio waves are abuzz with seasonal music before Thanksgiving even arrives. It’s a soundtrack for our lives during what can be a sublime or a stressful month, sometimes both. The hustle and bustle of the season is a perennial theme of holiday songs, the endless shopping and cooking and parties and family gatherings are both a welcome reconnection to our loved ones and an exhausting time of doing too much. Every year we try to strike a balance, followed by New Year’s resolutions about how we’ll take better care of ourselves in the year to come. On Christmas Eve my tradition for the past couple of decades has been to sing for an 8:00 p.m. service at Wake Forest Baptist Hospital, head over to the 11:00 p.m. service at my church, followed by a late-night dinner at Finnegan’s Wake Pub downtown. Last Christmas Eve was the first since I was a child that I didn’t sing, and it gave me a new appreciation for the ways the music of the holidays holds us together and comforts us with its ritual. Although things are not completely back to normal this year, there are plenty of opportunities to soak up some live music this December. At the Reeves Theater in Elkin, Joe Newberry and April Verch will bring a folky holiday offering to us on December 12. On December 3, during the Light Up Elkin Festival, the Elkin Big Band will have its annual Christmas concert featuring the wonderful vocalist, Teresa Jasper. On December 16, I’ll be 18 • SURRY LIVING Dec. 2021 Issue
performing sacred Christmas carols in the sonically exquisite sanctuary of Shallowford Presbyterian Church in Lewisville. If you check the calendars of any church or music venue near you, you’re sure to find special musical offerings to suit your style. I think music is perfect for gift giving. All year long I look for new North Carolina releases that fit the tastes of the folks on my Christmas list. During the long period of dormancy for live music in 2020 and 2021, the number of artists who spent their time recording is higher than ever. Check out what your favorite bands have been up to and give them a financial boost by buying their records. For folks in our region of the state, let me tell you about a new release called Elkin & Alleghany Line: Stories of the Foothills by Elkin singer-songwriter Caroline Noel Beverley. I met Caroline earlier this year when her old-time band, Gap Civil, played on the Martha Bassett Show. Upon hearing this disc, my first impression was of the beauty of the songs, the superb performance of the players, and production that allowed the warmth of the vocals and instruments to be at the forefront. On the second listening I opened the little booklet inside the CD to read the lyrics and origins of the songs, all taken from local tales and perspectives. Caroline spent time with folks who recounted histories of storms, ghosts, beloved creeks, and enterprises such as Chatham Blankets and Klondike Farm, and she turned those stories into songs rich in local lore and steeped in the sounds of Surry County old-time and folk music. I highly recommend this disc for your folk music loving friends. In the meantime, as you rush about preparing for all of the events ahead of you, I hope you’ll stop every now and then to become lost in music that soothes your soul. I wish you all a meaningful and balanced holiday season, and I’ll catch up with you again in January to discuss how we’ll do it all better next year!
