"Christmas at Wrigley" sounds like the title of a future Hallmark movie, which I hope the band will take as a supreme compliment. Mike originally wrote the song back in 2013. He didn't really have a band at the time, but after hearing The Ueckers' Rocket to Wrigley album, he found himself inspired to write some baseball-themed songs. "Christmas at Wrigley" was the first of these songs that he demoed. The demo ended up on Merry Mooster Mix-Mas, a Mooster Records compilation, and later, Still No Apostrophes, a compilation album of Mike's band The Robinsons. But Mike always wanted to properly re-record the song for Vista Blue, the band he originally formed to release all the baseball songs he had started writing! So that makes this song quite significant in the history of Vista Blue.
When real life got in the way this year and Mike and Mark didn't have time to arrange and record the new Christmas record they'd written, they decided to dust off "Christmas at Wrigley." And sure enough, this is a snappy little number in classic Vista Blue fashion. I had to chuckle at the timing of this release right in the middle of baseball hot stove season. This really is the time when baseball fans start to look ahead to next season and when optimism abounds. Although Mike kept the original lyrics, "Christmas at Wrigley" still feels current. Any Cubs fan enjoying the Christmas season in an empty ballpark might ask Santa for an outfielder who steals and hits and perhaps an upgrade at the hot corner (Alex Bregman, perhaps?) — and of course, an NL Central divisional crown. I love that Mike kept the line about bringing back Ryne Sandberg, which suddenly becomes a poignant tribute. Vista Blue might not be a baseball band or a Christmas band, but they've given us the definitive baseball Christmas song.
Backing "Christmas at Wrigley" is a lively arrangement of Billy Beau's adorable early '60s novelty number "Santa's Coffee" (penned by Dorsey Burnette and Joe Osborn). Mike has always loved the song and wondered why more people don't talk about it. So he and Mark have given it the Vista Blue treatment in hopes that some people will give the original a listen. I think the reason I love this band is because it makes music for people like me who have an adult's intellect but a child's spirit. "Santa's Coffee" definitely fits into that category, and there's no doubt this single will delight anyone who streams Vista Blue's Christmas songs every year. And hey, it suddenly feels like Christmas in my world. Time to get that last bottle of Abita Christmas Ale in the fridge for later!
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