Carpenter Ants & Friends kick off the holiday season with new Christmas album

By Matthew Young, RealWV

With Halloween now behind us, it’s time to turn our attention to the hap, hap, happiest season of the year. That’s right, the countdown has begun, all the good (and maybe some not so good) little kiddies are getting those sweet sugar plum dreams, and the chubby guy in the red suit is double-checking that list and making sure his sleigh is ship shape and Bristol fashion. 

On the retail side, stores are filling up with toys, and various holiday tchotchkes. Who can resist that two-foot ceramic Christmas tree with the plug in lights that’s usually displayed beside the plastic menorah that always has at least one broken candle?

And then there’s the music…

Bing Crosby and David Bowie swooning over that “Little Drummer Boy,” Wham pining for the love they had “Last Christmas,” and, for some reason, the theme song from Charlie Brown. There’s the King shaking his hips to “Blue Christmas,” Alabama depressing us all with their “Christmas Shoes,” and that damn Mariah Carey. 

Well Mariah may not be getting you for Christmas this year, but now there’s a collection of talented West Virginians who have a new Christmas album you’ll want to add to that holiday playlist – I’m speaking, of course, about The Carpenter Ants, and their amazing musical friends. 

“Making a Christmas record has been in our minds for many years, but the idea would only surface around the holidays, which is clearly too late,” The Carpenter Ants – consisting of Michael Lipton, Ted Harrison, Jupie Little, and Mark Cline Bates – told RealWV (and also wrote on the back of the album cover). “In early 2025, the gods of music looked down and said, ‘Now is the time!’”

The Carpenter Ants & Friends, “There Ain’t No Sanity Claus!,” is now available for pre-order, with all pre-orders shipping before  November 10. The album includes some familiar favorites, as well as a few new originals. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and you’ll sing along with your friends and family, all while the Ants and their pals ease you into the holiday spirit. 

In addition to The Carpenter Ants – including samplings from founding member the late Charlie Tee – the record features legends John Ellison, Larry Groce, Ann Magnuson (who once made out with David Bowie, but I don’t think that happened with Bing Crosby), Don Dixon, Mary Hott, Ammed Solomon, the incredible Randy Gilkey, and Erica Marks – whose cello performance on “The Cherry Tree Carol” is definitely the part that’ll make you cry. 

So tell Adam Sandler and your friend Veronica that it’s time to pre-order The Carpenter Ants & Friends, “There Ain’t No Sanity Claus!” It isn’t made out of clay, but it is dry and ready to play and perfect for all eight of your crazy nights.

The digital album is available for $10, with individual tracks available for purchase/download. Compact disc-versions of “There Ain’t No Sanity Claus” are available at $15, and will ship within five days. Visit https://thecarpenterants1.bandcamp.com/album/there-aint-no-sanity-claus to purchase. 

Oh, and stay tuned to The RealWV – we may just have a pretty cool announcement coming soon about our 2025 Christmas concert! 

Also, this article should probably be a hint as to what that announcement might be.