Since Chris Thile took over A Prairie Home Companion and rebranded it as Live From Here in late 2016, it’s become one of the most consistently enjoyable live music experiences out there. From his all-star guests to his prodigious musical ability to his charismatically light-hearted banter, there’s no better way to spend an early Saturday evening than with Thile and company.
Part of what makes the show so enjoyable is its seasonal nature, as Thile clearly loves adding a touch of musical accompaniment to whatever time of year it happens to be. On the most recent episode of the live radio variety show, special guest Cory Wong joined in to help funkify a holiday season classic, “Christmas Is Coming”, one of several now-iconic instrumentals on the Vince Guaraldi Trio‘s 1965 Peanuts soundtrack, A Charlie Brown Christmas.
Wong’s trademark staccato rhythm playing on this rendition brought new life to the Christmas favorite, and Thile’s always-excellent mandolin leads added yet another refreshing layer to the familiar song. Mix up your Christmas playlist (let’s be honest, we know you’re sick of those 20 songs at this point) with this jolly “Christmas Is Coming” featuring Thile, Wong, Mike Elizondo, Eric Doob, Chris Eldridge, Alex Hargreaves, and Brett Williams.
Live From Here with Chris Thile ft. Cory Wong – “Christmas Is Coming” [Vince Guaraldi Trio cover, Pro-Shot] – 12/19/19
[Video: Live from Here]
As a bonus, slide from there right into a Live From Here rendition of another Guaraldi A Charlie Brown Christmas tune, “Linus and Lucy”, played on 2018’s Holiday episode:
Live From Here with Chris Thile – “Linus and Lucy” [Vince Guaraldi Trio cover, Pro-Shot] – 12/22/18
[Video: Live from Here]
Chris Thile and Cory Wong have collaborated on various occasions in recent memory. The most notable, however, was when Thile and Dave Koz joined Wong and Vulfpeck during their debut performance at Madison Square Garden on September 28th for a memorable rendition of “Smile Meditation”. You can watch a full, pro-shot video of that performance here.