Just when you felt like your old holiday favorites were getting…well…old, a great new tune surfaces. Written by Broadway talent Drew Seeley and Barry Anderson and London songwriter Mark Petty, “Stowin’ Away in Santa’s Sleigh” showcases the vocals of Seeley and is infused with the fun and sentimental spirit of the season. I caught up with co-writer and Jersey Boys’ Barry Anderson for a “Stowin’ Away” Q & A.
What inspired you, Mark and Drew to write “Stowin’ Away”?
For most people, the holidays go hand-in-hand with being around those you love—the people who ARE your home. We wanted to give a fresh, new take on the “home for the holidays” theme and write a song about someone who wasn’t going to let anything keep him from getting home to the one he loves. What faster, quicker, safer way to get home by Christmas Eve than by hitching a ride in Santa’s sleigh, right? As a performer on the road, I’ve spent my share of Christmases far from home. So, for me, the concept speaks true, as it does for millions of people wishing they could make it home in time for Christmas.
Watch the behind-the-scenes ‘in studio’ music video for Stowin’ Away.
Is it difficult to have three collaborators, with presumably three different holiday experiences, tackling the same song?
It was actually incredible how the pieces fell into place with this one. Mark and I had started work on the tune initially, we had most of the song fleshed-out, but there were still some missing pieces. Drew came into the mix with some great ideas, and within about a day, the song was finished. He and I played through the song in my hotel in State College, Pennsylvania, one afternoon last month and immediately knew it was going to be something pretty cool and that we should do something with it.
Listen to Stowin’ Away.
You’re a Broadway actor and musical theater guy, how did you decide that Drew would do vocals?
Drew and I have been working together onstage for over a year (Anderson plays Bob Crew to Seeley’s Bob Gaudio in the popular Jersey Boys tour) and I’ve always wanted to write something fun for him to do. With this song, every time the title line would roll around in my head, all I kept thinking was, “I would love to hear what Drew could do with this tune.” He’s got real vocal dexterity and smoothness in terms of how he handles a musical phrase. He sings pop so well. So to put his voice together with a classic-sounding holiday song complete with a horn section was hugely fun and such a great combination. We had a blast in the recording studio! Again, it kind of all fell into place musically—a perfect match of singer and song.
Not including “Stowin’ Away,” what is your favorite holiday song?
Melody-wise, I’ve always loved “Greensleeves/(What Child Is This?)”. The Andy Williams recording of “It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year” quintessentially says “holidays” to me, so that’s pretty high up on my list. It’s cool that it’s still getting played so much. When it comes to Christmas songs and albums, I am a retro junkie. I’m constantly recommending Steve and Eydie’s [husband and wife vocal team Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gormé] holiday album to people.
What do you hope people will take away from your song?
Our goal in writing this song was fairly simple—make it fun. Three-and-a-half minutes of catchy holiday cheer that makes people want to smile, sing along, and listen to again is what we set out to write. And hopefully people will identify with the line, “I won’t let you spend the holidays alone.” That’s a sentiment that’s always kind of nice to hear, isn’t it?
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