George Shingleton is a man with a deep voice, steeped in whiskey and covered in grit. It speaks of life lived, battles fought, triumphs won, and hard work accomplished. The country artist, who now calls Nashville home, originally hailed from West Virginia, and, if you listen, his Appalachian roots are showing just as much as his current home colors the songs on his forthcoming album, Out All Nighter, which is due out from Rock Ridge Music on December 4, 2020. He’s already released three singles from the album (“Fire or Flame,” “Handful of Hell,” and “Have a Good Time”). Fans are in for an additional treat on October 23, 2020, when Shingleton releases a stand-alone holiday single not on the new album, a twangy, plaintive take on the traditional Christmas song, “O Little Town of Bethlehem.” Basic and stripped down, the song features Shingleton on vocals and Shane Sanders on resonator guitar. Vents is excited to premiere the song for you today, and we sat down with Shingleton recently to talk a little bit about his touching rendition.

Vents: What made you want to record a holiday song?George

Shingleton: It came up as a joke one time, just hanging out, and then later I thought, why not? Everybody has to do at least one holiday song.

Vents: Why did you choose this particular song? Does it have personal meaning for you?

GS: This one has always been one of my favorites since I was a kid, so it stuck out in my head.

Vents: What kind of a vibe were you going for on this song when you recorded it? Do you think you ended up with a song that sounds like you expected it to sound? If so, how so, and if not, what’s different about it?

GS: We wanted to record a broken-down version of the song when we started. I’ve always liked the resonator guitar, and Shane Sanders – the fella playing the resonator guitar on the recording – had just acquired one. Dave Pahanish, the producer, was setting up mics in the studio before we even had our parts figured out! I think it turned out exactly as we wanted it to. The vocal and that style of guitar seemed to be the blend that was right for the sound. It just felt good.

Vents: What are your plans for the holidays?

GS: We usually try to get up home to West Virginia for the holidays. I’m hoping that’s gonna happen this year. There’s nothing like being around the folks who care the most about you during the season.