It's beginning to look a lot like...

 Christmas started early in my neighborhood this year. Some people were putting their decorations up before Thanksgiving. And even Jacqueline--who is normally a Christmas Eve let's get busy girl --asked if we (meaning she) could put the tree up yesterday...three weeks before C-Day. 

I think part of it is the need we have for something to look forward to in this desolate year. 9 months of hunkering down is enough to get to even a rock / island guy like me.

And since the tree was up, I thought maybe I should start some Christmas music going. Of course, the problem there is that some of those songs have just been beaten to death, and attempts to revive them via country twang or rap beat or whatever are just kind of undead (awkward and without soul) to my ears.

Enter Ben Cosgrove and Midwinter, Volumes 1​-​6.

Go to /bandcamp, and for a mere $15 you can get 26 Christmas songs from Ben's nimble fingers:

1.  Coventry Carol 1:27
2.  In the Bleak Midwinter 1:33
3.  I Wonder as I Wander 2:14
4.  O Come Emmanuel 2:15
5.  Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming 2:05
6.  Greensleeves 2:29
7.  The First Noel 2:44
8.  In Dulce Jubilo 1:14
9.  Huron Carol 1:23
10. Silent Night 1:58
11. O Little Town of Bethlehem 1:35
12. We Three Kings 1:53
13. I Saw a Maiden 1:30
14. Wassail, Wassail 1:04
15. O, Holy Night 3:37
16. Away in a Manger 2:23
17. Sheep May Safely Graze 4:37
18. Joy to the World 2:01
19. Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella :40
20. Deck the Halls :49
21. Good King Wenceslas 1:26
22. God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen 3:08
23. It Came Upon a Midnight Clear :57
24. Cherry Tree Carol 2:08
25. While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks by Night 1:41
26. Adestes Fideles 1:31

As you can see, some are familiar tunes, others are a bit more exotic

--though you might find that your recognize some of them once they get going. Take a look at the running times for the songs, and you can see that Ben doesn't beat a tune to death, either. 49 seconds' worth of "Deck the Halls" is enough to give you a sip, but doesn't threaten to drown you. And Ben has a really nice touch on every one of these songs. Many of them are solo piano, but they sound new and vibrant. I read an interview in which Ben talked about "reducing a song to what is most important about it," and that is very much in evidence here. If traditional versions of Christmas songs are soiled and much trodden upon snow, Ben's versions are new fallen fields, pristine and joyous.