I love Christmas music, but I’m a bit picky about it. Every year there are plenty of new Christmas songs released, but most of them are overly cliché and cloying. They feel like a cash grab rather than an honest contribution to the canon of Christmas music. So when I do bring you a Christmas song, you know it’s good. Wrap your ears around “Not Christmas Here,” the latest singer from Imogen Clark. Penned with acclaimed singer-songwriter Steve Poltz and recorded with an all-star cast of musicians at Peter Frampton’s Studio Phenix in Nashville, it manages to be sweet without being schmaltzy.
“I went to the US to write and record earlier this year, and while I was there, I decided this was my last visit and the next time I came back would be me moving there” Imogen recalled. “I was so excited but also overwhelmed and terrified about moving to the other end of the Earth. I thought of my Aussie Christmases, visiting my family home in Western Sydney and taking stock of what I’ve learned, achieved and overcome in the last twelve months. This song is me projecting ahead to how I’ll feel on my first Christmas living in America, without my family close by, and without all the trappings of an Australian Christmas – the sweltering heat, seafood dinners and white wine.”
“It was so much fun writing this song with Imogen,” Steve added. “She’s a great collaborator and a wonderful songsmith with great instincts. It put us in the Christmas spirit while we were smack dab in the middle of a heatwave in Nashville. Honored to be a part of the whole shebang.”
She might be based in the United States now, but Imogen won’t stay away for too long. She’ll play a string of shows as a special guest of BOWEN * YOUNG in January. If you’re stuck for Christmas gift ideas, might I suggest some tickets?
12 January 2024 – Barwon Club, Djilang/Geelong
13 January 2024 – Thornbury Theatre, Naarm/Melbourne
14 January 2024 – Theatre Royal, Dja Dja Wurrung Country/Castlemaine
19 January 2024 – Factory Theatre, Eora/Sydney
20 January 2024 – Lizotte’s, Mulubinba/Newcastle
21 January 2024 – Capitol Theatre, Kamilaroi Country/Tamworth
27 January 2024 – IMB Theatre, Woolyungah/Wollongong
28 January 2024 – The Triffid, Meeanjin/Brisbane
Photo used with permission from Chinwag PR