Irish star Andrea Corr is embracing the festive season with the surprise release of a selection of Christmas songs. Her EP - entitled simply Christmas Songs - was released earlier this week (Nov. 25) and features the time-honoured classics Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, O Holy Night and In The Bleak Mid-Winter.

Andrea Corr - Christmas Songs EPAndrea Corr - Christmas Songs EP

The EP also includes an original song called Begin Again. Written by Andrea, there's more than a touch of The Corrs' classic style to this new tune.

The Corrs’ frontwoman revealed in an interview with ContactMusic that the idea for a Christmas EP came about after she visited Our Lady’s Hospice in Dublin’s Harold’s Cross last year, and sang a selection of her personal seasonal favourites during her visit. 

“It was an incredibly moving experience that inspired me to record the songs this year,” Andrea said.

The four beautiful, touching songs featured on Andrea Corr's Christmas Songs also have a special place in her childhood. 

“These are songs that I grew up with,” she shared. “My father played O Holy Night in our church every Christmas Eve when we were kids. We had been planning this record since my visit to the hospice last year — and then the world changed, and the lyrics took on a whole new and special meaning. Christmas is always an emotional time, this year more than ever.”

It was quite the endeavour during this pandemic to find a male voice choir who could all sing together in the same venue for the recordings, but this was eventually discovered in Perth, Australia, with the lovely Giovanni Consort Choir. 

Andrea Corr's Christmas Songs is doubtlessly set to be a big hit with fans of The Corrs around the globe this festive season, but we're sure its appeal is likely to spread much further.

By Kevin Palmer