For Sue Passmore, the holiday season just isn’t complete without one particular top of the list item. It’s not a nutmeg topped glass of eggnog nor is it placing a shimmering star on the peak of a pine. It isn’t even a visit from that right jolly old elf that shakes when he laughs like a bowl full of jelly.
Ho Ho No! It's none of the above. You see, in the Passmore holiday household, she tells me, “it isn’t Christmas without the Mason Cherry Balls!”
The shortbread recipe with the maraschino cherry centre all rolled up in sugary sweet goodness may be a tasty Christmastime tradition for Sue but for fans of her band, The Good Lovelies, the season doesn’t quite feel right until she is joined on stage by Kerri Ough and Caroline Brooks. It’s the bright red bow on the perfect package when they croon out timeless classics of the season as well as new favourites in harmonies as light and airy as a snowflake on your favourite scarf.
Thankfully, Christmas is coming early this year with the Good Lovelies bringing their festive feast of song to the National Arts Centre this evening. For a band who has deep roots in the holiday season, these shows are always ones the trio look forward to. Back in 2006, their first show was actually booked to present the three of them as individual musicians, not as a band but a solo career wasn't what they would find under the tree.
“Since it was Christmas time, we thought it would be fun to do some songs together,” explains Passmore.
“Turned out that we all knew harmonies to a handful of Christmas songs, and we discovered a common intuition for singing. It was magical. It made the hairs on Caroline’s arms stand up. Putting that show together, we laughed so much it hurt, and that’s the kind of fun we would have been crazy to walk away from. So we didn’t.”
Thus, not only have the Christmas concerts become a holiday tradition but, for the band, it celebrates a birthday as well. That decision to put on the first of these performances has led to a lifelong musical marriage. The three even share the same bank account! Over the years they have seen their Christmas team grow for what Passmore says has become a “reunion that’s inevitably full of fun and silliness.”
“It’s also a great musical challenge to change gears completely every November, refreshing old familiar songs, and finding new gems to add to the setlist.”
When asked what standards they most enjoy including in that set each year, Passmore points out “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” was part of that very first performance. When it was brought back into the show in 2015, she realized how personal it had become. It is sung around the piano at her home every year and she’s happy it returned to the stage. “O Holy Night” and “Silent Night” are two other gorgeous sing-alongs with the latter bringing out all the festive feelings.
Some of their favourite holiday show memories include the time their bass player Ben Whiteley decked himself out in a full-body Christmas tree costume for Gordon Lightfoot’s “Song For A Winter’s Night” . It had the band in tears of hilarity. Then there was that night Santa showed up, yanked a bottle of beer from out of his sack which promptly went flying onto the floor to spray a thick stream of foam up into the air.
This year, the band is promoting 2018 release Shapeshifters so fans can expect a few new tunes to mix and mingle with the holiday fare. Though the bulk of the concert will remain winter and Christmas themed, Passmore says getting a chance to work in a few of their own more recent tracks make for a lift and refresher throughout the performance.
“Christmas brings out a rowdiness and a general sense of excitement in our audiences,” says Passmore of the band’s Christmas crowds. “I believe that many of us enjoy these traditions, the feelings that the music inspires, and the chance to sing along. It’s fantastic.”
Speaking of traditions, alongside those Mason Cherry Balls, Passmore relays that every year her family visits the same local farm to pick out their tree. Growing up, her and her brother had a little paper village and this custom is now being passed on to her son.
“It’s my turn to share everything I love about Christmas with my little guy, and that fills me with delight. He’s already pretty pumped! Everywhere we go, he says “Mummy look! It’s Christmas! Santa’s going to be there!”
Traditions like the annual concert, she says, are all part of the magic and each season she collects new memories to look back upon with fondness.
“Make memories. Choose quality over quantity. It’s easy to be swept up in the buying, but it’s so much more fun to focus on the magic, without creating an excess of waste. I worry about all the gift packaging! Some of our favourite parts of Christmas involve the decorations we’ve made and reuse every year, the food we eat, the company we keep, the music we make and how much we have laughed. I would love to see us all use less and enjoy each other more.”
The Good Lovelies make the season bright tonight at the National Arts Centre. Accompanying them is their band of merry men - Steve Zsirai on upright bass, Robbie Grunwald on keys and Mark Mariash on drums. This show is sure to have you humming along, laughing, and full of mirth by the show's end.