This album was recorded in December 2020, during the worst part of the pandemic. Many of us had not seen family or friends in months. I was beginning to accept that most normal Holiday gatherings were not going to happen. A musician friend of mine posted on Facebook that he was going to miss all the normal Holiday gigs that he usually got to play that time of year. That made me wonder if I could still somehow play Christmas music for people. So I pulled out my phone and improvised a 1-minute version of my favorite Christmas Carol, “Joy To The World.” I posted what I made on the first day of December and got such great feedback that I decided to write and record an original 60-second arrangement of a Christmas song every day leading up to Christmas Day. Some days were easier to do than others, but I met my goal.

After a couple of days recording by myself, I wondered if I could collaborate with friends remotely, getting them to add to what I had played, all using our phones to record. I was humbled by, and grateful for how many people were willing to join in on my Bite Size Christmas project.
I was able to record with friends from my band, Back Alley Brass Band, who I hadn’t gotten to play with for months because of the pandemic, with a college buddy who I hadn’t played with in over 20 years, with some great local Kansas City musicians with whom I’ve never played in real life, with family members, and even my wife and kids who all helped on some songs.

For being somewhat lo-fi, I’m really happy with the quality of these recordings. Most tunes were arranged, recorded, mixed, and published in one day. All of my parts were recorded on my phone in my basement with the Acapella app.

You’ll hear ambient noises like the chair squeaking, people walking on the floor above me, and even dinner being made.

Some songs were done very simply, with only a couple of tracks. Others have lots going on, with sometimes up to 8-9 tracks. Every song is around 60-seconds or less.

I hope you enjoy this album of Bite Sized Christmas songs. Please share the album and help me spread the joy of the season