Nick Lowe

John Hiatt's talents as a singer and songwriter have never been a matter of question, but for the longest time neither Hiatt nor his various record labels seemed to know what to do with him. Epic Records thought he was some sort of a folky, while MCA figured, since his songs were often cranky and angular, he could be sold as a skinny-tie new wave guy. Neither idea made much of a dent in the marketplace, and by the time Hiatt cut his second album for Geffen, Riding with the King, someone had come to the reasonable conclusion that Hiatt was a roots-rocker at heart – but what kind of roots-rocker?

Over the course of their three-decade career, Nashville's Los Straitjackets have established themselves as America's premier surf rock group. While the band has a handful of albums that range from covers of surf rock staples to slamming originals, Los Straitjackets have released various Christmas albums and singles to much critical acclaim. Yep Roc Records has compiled every holiday song the band has ever recorded into one Los Straitjackets collection, Complete Christmas Songbook.

Born in 1939 in Chicago, Mavis Staples achieved wide recognition as lead singer for the Staple Singers. She first recorded solo for Stax subsidiary Volt in 1969. Subsequent efforts included a Curtis Mayfield-produced soundtrack on Curtom, a disappointing nod to disco for Warner in 1979, a misguided stab at electropop with Holland-Dozier-Holland in 1984, and an uneven album for Paisley Park…

Biography by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
With their fusion of blues, rock & roll, and R&B, the Fabulous Thunderbirds helped popularize roadhouse Texas blues with a mass audience in the '80s and, in the process, they helped kick-start a blues revival during the mid-'80s. During their heyday in the early '80s, they were the most popular attraction on the blues bar circuit, which eventually led to a breakthrough to the pop audience in 1986 with their fifth album, Tuff Enuff. The mass success didn't last too long, and founding member Jimmie Vaughan left in 1990, but the Fabulous Thunderbirds remained one of the most popular blues concert acts in America during the '90s.
Guitarist Jimmie Vaughan formed the Fabulous Thunderbirds with vocalist/harpist Kim Wilson in 1974; in addition to Vaughan and Wilson, the band's original lineup included bassist Keith Ferguson and drummer Mike Buck. Initially, the group also featured vocalist Lou Ann Barton, but she left the band shortly after its formation. Within a few years, the Thunderbirds became the house band for the Austin club Antone's, where they would play regular sets and support touring blues musicians. By the end of the decade, they had built a strong fan base, which led to a record contract with the local Takoma Records…..

Celebrate the holiday season with your favorite group of masked surf rockers - Los Straitjackets! Since forming in 1988, Los Straitjackets have put out two full-length holiday records (2002’s ‘Tis the Season for Los Straitjackets and 2009’s Yuletide Beat), a 7-inch single of “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” and “Silver Bells,” as well as contributing a song to a Yep Roc holiday compilation and performing a rocking rendition of “Linus and Lucy” while on tour with Nick Lowe. To make life easier for you this holiday season, we’ve compiled all of these essential surf rock holiday staples that are sure to ring your jingle bells in the Complete Christmas Songbook from Los Straitjackets. Put some rocking in your stocking with the dulcet tones of Los Straitjackets!