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Local couple reflects after 25 years of holiday music

Jan Garrett and JD Martin have been playing music together for two decades. They’re both seasoned musicians who’ve toured around the world, but the one constant for the last 25 years has been the Winter Solstice concert they put on. It is one event that doesn’t need the Christmas holiday to bring people in.

Throughout their long music careers, JD has had his songs recorded by Reba McIntyre, and Jan toured with Steve Martin and John Denver. They were playing in the same Aspen scene, but the problem was that they didn’t really know each other.

 

“We knew each other from a distance, but we really didn’t get together then," says Jan. "Fast forward for 20 years or so. We met again and, gosh. When I heard his beautiful voice, I went “Oh my gosh. Something’s gonna happen there.”

 

Jan and JD felt an immediate connection. And something did happen there. They worked on the song that Jan was writing while JD lived further west. They would send tapes and ideas back and forth. It wasn’t a very convenient method of working. Soon, JD came back to Colorado, and it was magic.

 

Now, they have seven albums, including a holiday one called “All These Gifts” which they released last year. Together, they’ve been performing a concert on the winter solstice for the last 20 years, with Jan playing five years solo before that. The winter solstice is the shortest day of the year. The sun sets at around quarter to five.

 

Jan says the purpose of the concert is to help people get through the darker times of the winter, especially since it’s getting a bit brighter each day.

 

“The solstice is the longest night of the year, and then the next day, the days start getting longer again," she says. "It’s a beautiful time of getting together with people in that dark time and bringing in some good cheer and spirit. I think that the winter solstice is an all-inclusive holiday.”

 

She says the event hasn’t changed much over the years. They still play holiday music. They make the songs for everyone.

 

After all of these years, there are rarely any moments that they don’t want to do the show anymore.

 

They love the community that the concert has created. It is the same people year after year, but that isn’t a problem for her. It something that she looks forward to.

 

“There’s a really solid underpinning of really lovely people," says Jan. "For something like this, you can come in here and feel what Aspen really feels like. It’s a soulful place. It just gets covered up by the glitz and the weird press.”

They play on Monday night at the Aspen Community Church.