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A Holiday Extravaganza From World Cafe

On today's special, Christmas-themed episode of World Cafe, we're gathering several big-name artists and their best holiday songs to spread some seasonal cheer.

The prolific folk-rock singer-songwriter Jack Johnson joins us from his home in Honolulu to share songs from his Brushfire label's Christmas compilation. Johnson describes the inspiration behind the songs, spins a few and discusses the charity to which he's donating the profits. Johnson's labelmate and tour buddy, Philly bluesman G. Love, also shares a holiday tune of his own.

Next, Carole King shares stories and songs from her new album, A Holiday Carole. A music legend with four Grammys, a career that spans five decades and 10 chart-topping albums, King describes the inspiration behind her song choices and plays material from A Holiday Carole, which features three generations of musicians from her family.

Finally, Scott Weiland — of Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver fame — wraps up today's show with songs from his latest release, an orchestral Christmas record titled The Most Wonderful Time of the Year. Hear Weiland play live and talk with World Cafe host David Dye about the album, Weiland's childhood experiences with holiday music, and his decision to go classical after years playing rock.

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