Mick Sterling • BLESSED - Songs For Christmas Time

Mick Sterling has been a fixture on the Twin Cities music scene for over two decades. Known primarily 17 years for his 10 piece Soul and R&B band MICK STERLING AND THE STUD BROTHERS from 1989-2005, Sterling produced multiple CD and performed hundreds of shows in the region. After 2005, Sterling ended the band and began his own musical statements with his solo record BETWEEN SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY MORNING. His latest venture is BLESSED - Songs for Christmas Time, on the New Folk Records Label, is a continuation of Sterling's musical journey and his ongoing effort to break stereotype and take the people familiar with Sterling in a new direction.

BLESSED is filled with refreshing interpretations of some Christmas classics such as AVE MARIA, HAVE YOURSELF A MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS, I'LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS, BABY IT'S COLD OUTSIDE and many others. What makes this effort stand out from other Christmas releases is that this CD is not all Christmas songs. Featuring a cover of Gene Autry's old cowboy classic HAVE I TOLD YOU LATELY THAT I LOVE YOU fit's right in the Christmas theme. The other one....you'll have to find out for yourself! But I know you'll dig it!

The instrumentation is sparse and lovely. Two acoustic guitars, fiddle and light percussion are all that adorn these songs, along with Sterling 's soulful take on vocals. Recorded basically live in the studio, the songs have a very raw and tender feeling to them. Many of the treatments of these songs, such as an acoustic guitar and vocal take on AVE MARIA and an added fiddle on O HOLY NIGHT are breathtakingly beautiful treatments of these traditional songs. While the treatments are original, it does not stray too far off the songs that mean a lot to everyone. It's just nice to hear them in a different way.

Intimate and fresh and surprisingly soulful, BLESSED - Songs for Christmas Time features amazing musicianship and will fit right in with all of your favorite holiday releases for years to come.