Clare Dunn usually heads home to southeast Colorado for Christmas to celebrate with her parents and sister. When she has time to watch a Christmas classic, it’s usually either White Christmas or Christmas Vacation. When she and her family sit down for Christmas dinner, it’s not your usual turkey or ham. “I’m a steak girl, so I always talk my parents into grilling steak at Christmas,” she laughs. “So, that’s usually my favorite thing about Christmas, food-wise.”
Clare just released her first holiday song, “Step Into Christmas,” a cover of the 1973 Elton John classic. ” One of the main reasons I chose to record it, other than just being a huge fan of Elton John and this song, I just love how happy it is,” says Clare. “It’s just inviting everybody to step into the Christmas spirit. And I know the holidays can sometimes be a little rough for some folks out there, and I just wanted my first time of doing a Christmas song to be something uplifting and very joyful and just something that people can make really happy memories to.”
Audio / Clare Dunn talks about what Christmas time means to her.
DownloadClare Dunn (Christmas time) OC: …places to be. :42
“So, Christmas time for me means going home to the farming ranch in Colorado to be wit my family. And, you know, there’s always work to be done on a farming ranch, anybody who’s ever grown up on one knows that. So, it’s just still that way. We all bundle up like we used to even and get into our work clothes and go out and take care of cattle and break ice in water tanks and clean horse stalls and make sure everybody’s fed and well-taken care of, and then it’s our turn. And we cook a bunch of food, and my mom always has the house decorated so cool, and it’s probably one of my favorite times of the year and of course, being home is one of my favorite places to be.”
Audio / Clare Dunn says White Christmas and Christmas Vacation are her favorite holiday movies.
DownloadClare Dunn (Christmas movie) OC: …favorites. :11
“My favorite Christmas movie is probably either White Christmas or National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation with Chevy Chase. So, those are my two [laughs] favorites.”
Audio / Clare Dunn, who grew up on a ranch in Colorado, says they have steak for Christmas dinner.
DownloadClare Dunn (Christmas food) OC: …food-wise. [laughs] :08
“I’m a steak girl, so I always talk my parents into grilling steak at Christmas. So, that’s usually my favorite thing about Christmas, food-wise.” [laughs]
Audio / Clare Dunn explains why she chose to record a cover of Elton John's "Step Into Christmas."
DownloadClare Dunn (Step Into Christmas) OC: …memories to. :38
“So, I just released my very first Christmas song, which is a cover of Elton John’s original called ‘Step Into Christmas,” and I just love this song. One of the main reasons I chose to record it, other than just being a huge fan of Elton John and this song, I just love how happy it is. It’s just inviting everybody to step into the Christmas spirit. And I know the holidays can sometimes be a little rough for some folks out there, and I just wanted my first time of doing a Christmas song to be something uplifting and very joyful and just something that people can make really happy memories to.”