A Very McCrary Christmas The McCrary Sisters

• 1 Go Tell It On The Mountain 04:59
• 2 O Come, O Come Emmanuel 04:47
• 3 O, Come, All Ye Faithful 04:03
• 4 O Holy Night 05:25
• 5 Children Go Where I Send Thee 04:54
• 6 Away In A Manger 04:37
• 7 Joy To The World 04:06
• 8 What Child Is This? 05:08
• 9 No Room At The Inn 02:33
• 10 Jesus, Oh What A Wonderful Child 04:26
• 11 Silent Night 04:24
• 12 Joyful, Joyful 03:30
• 13 Here I Am Lord, Send Me 04:15
• Total Runtime 57:07

Info for A Very McCrary Christmas

Ann, Deborah, Freda, and Regina McCrary – collectively known as The McCrary Sisters – will release A Very McCrary Christmas. The album, co-produced with three-time GRAMMY winner Scott Billington, is a stunning collection of 13 sacred songs – 12 traditional hymns and one new composition – featuring arrangements that reflect the quartet’s soulful Southern roots.

The album was inspired by the Sisters’ annual A McCrary Kind of Christmas concert in Nashville. Now in its tenth year, the concert benefits local families as well as St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Just like these annual concerts, A Very McCrary Christmas highlights the sisters’ favorite holiday songs, delivered with reverence and exuberance.

The group’s spirited, soulful renditions of classic Christmas songs like “Go Tell It On the Mountain,” “Oh Come, All Ye Faithful,” “Away In a Manger,” “O Holy Night,” “What Child Is This?,” and “Jesus, Oh What a Wonderful Child” are infused with elements of Southern gospel, R&B, pop, and jazz, and convey the infectious joy the sisters derive from their deep faith.

“My prayer, when it comes to this record, is that every song will bring some kind of hope and love,” says Regina McCrary. “I want it to set people free, and I want it to give them love and joy and peace and hope — and to be able to heal. That’s what this record is all about for me.”

Ann McCrary concurs. “These songs stir me up,” she says, “and they do bring back a feel of the reason for the season. Some people will hear the songs that they listened to when they were little, and it’s going to bring that excitement of Christmas back to them.”

A number of special guests make appearances on the album, including Pastor Shirley Caesar, Steve Crawford, Jerry Douglas, Alison Krauss, Buddy Miller, and Keb’ Mo’. The McCrary Sisters can be heard individually throughout the songs, yet it’s the power of all four voices together that makes the album shine.

“We wanted it different, right off the bat,” says Freda McCrary. “We said we want to do traditional songs, but with a different feel. You would have never thought that was the way ‘Away in a Manger’ was going to go — or any of these songs. But all of them have a different flavor on it — I guess we can call it the McCrary flavor. And everybody has input. Everybody. Not just one person.”

The McCrarys grew up in Nashville as the children of Reverend Samuel H. McCrary, who raised a large family while balancing his roles as a preacher and a performer. As an original member of the Fairfield Four, he instilled a musical education into four sons and four daughters.

“We grew up on traditional gospel music in the church, but we like all different music,” says Deborah McCrary. “We don’t like only gospel. We were allowed to listen to any kind of music we wanted to.”

Those diverse influences are on full display in the McCrary Sisters’ spirited concerts and stirring recordings, which have earned them a loyal and passionate following over the last decade. But they are also renowned for their memorable contributions – both individually and as a group – to recordings and performances by a remarkable array of artists including Bob Dylan, Mary Gauthier, Buddy Guy, Isaac Hayes, Dr. John, Buddy Miller, Elvis Presley, Margo Price, Carrie Underwood, and Stevie Wonder.

Ann McCrary reflects, “I always say one of the greatest gifts to me is to be able to see people’s faces light up when we sing. That I feel like they are receiving. They’re receiving something from us that’s going to make them feel better about any situation that’s going on. So, with this Christmas CD, I just hope people will feel better. Feel good. Pat their feet, and jump a little bit. And shake it. That makes it good.”

The McCrary Sisters

The McCrary Sisters
(Ann, Deborah, Regina and Alfreda) are the daughters of the late Rev. Samuel McCrary -- one of the original members of the legendary gospel quartet The Fairfield Four. The daughters were raised in harmony, singing at home and at their father's church, but word soon spread of their individual accomplished voices and each began sharing the family vocal legacy as solo artists with a wide range of performers to include Bob Dylan, Elvis, Isaac Hayes and Stevie Wonder.

In 2011, the Sisters officially formed their own group, The McCrary Sisters, and have recorded or performed with the Black Keys, Martina McBride, Eric Church, Patty Griffin, Buddy Miller, Jonny Lang, Robert Randolph, The Winans, Donnie McClurkin, Nashville’s Jonathan Jackson, Mike Ferris and many more. They have been featured on Bobby Jones Gospel and TBN’s Jason Crabbe Show.

While working with Bob Dylan, Regina McCrary met Dr. John and in 2012, the Sisters performed with Dr. John and Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys to promote Dr. John’s Grammy award winning CD, Locked Down, which featured them as background vocalists. Most recently the group was included on Dr. John’s 2014 Concord Music release.

Recent performance highlights include the 2014 and 2013 Americana Music Awards backing Loretta Lynn, Jackson Browne, Rosanne Cash and working with celebrity band members Don Was, Ry Cooder and Buddy Miller. The McCrary Sisters were also featured in live musical tributes to Gregg Allman, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Dr. John and Mavis Staples. Upcoming shows include performing at the White House in Washington D.C., Sandy Beaches Cruise with Delbert Clinton and Friends, and tours in the U.K and Scotland.

The McCrary Sisters’ new CD Let’s Go is slated for a spring 2015 release and was produced by Buddy Miller and featured The Fairfield Four. The McCrary Sisters and The Fairfield Four also shared the stage during the taping of the All-Star PBS Pledge Special, Rock My Soul: A Celebration of the Gospel Quartet filmed at the Nashville Downtown Presbyterian Church. This national PBS special featured special guest artists Lee Ann Womack, Buddy Miller, Amos Lee, Lucinda Williams and Van Hunt.

The new album Let’s Go and the National PBS Pledge Special DVD Rock My Soul will join the existing 2011 CD Our Journey and 2013 CD All The Way (available though McC RECORDS/THIRTY TIGERS).

This album contains no booklet.