During the 10 years he lived in Manhattan, Weymouth native James Melody missed the sights and sounds of Boston, especially around the holidays. His thoughts turned to images of Boston Common sparkling with Christmas lights, children skating on the Frog Pond, the Salvation Army's bells ringing out at Park Street Station. But mostly he thought of his family and friends back home.
So Melody picked up his acoustic guitar and wrote an ode not only to the city he missed but to all who were in his thoughts during the holidays. The result: a James Taylor-esque ballad titled "Christmas in Boston."
Melody was so proud of the song that when he moved back to Weymouth in 2005 he went into a recording studio for the first time in his life and made a CD that featured "Christmas in Boston." He mailed copies to 150 friends and relatives as a Christmas card - a big move for a self-conscious artist like him.
"I've played cover songs for people," said Melody, 47, "but with the exception of one song I wrote about my mother - and let's face it, who's going to say anything bad about your mother - I've rarely shared songs that I've written myself. This one was different."
His reticence may come as a surprise to those who meet him. He's a big teddy bear of a man with an even bigger personality and a fearless spirit that may be jollier than Santa Claus's.
"I knew it was the right time," he said. "I truly believed the song captured Boston at Christmastime. I felt right about it. All of this just feels right. The song was meant to be shared."
And shared it has been. Melody and his song have reached a wide audience, enjoying regular radio play and an invitation to play at Boston's annual tree-lighting ceremony on the Common.
It all started last year, four days before Christmas, when a friend of Melody's sent the CD to Pete Falconi , the program director of Oldies 103.3 FM. Every year, beginning in mid-November, WODS switches to a 24-hour Christmas music format that runs through the holidays. After listening to the song, Falconi did the only thing he could do. "I knew people would respond to it, so I put it on the air immediately," Falconi said.
Falconi's instinct was dead on. The response from listeners was immediate and enthusiastic, so much so that he's put "Christmas in Boston" into regular rotation this season.
Melody said he's thrilled.
"My song is playing during prime time on the top-rated station in Boston," he said. "Bostonians love their Christmas music. I feel fortunate that I happened to write a song that is resonating with people."
Oldies 103.3 frequently tops the ratings throughout the month of December because of its all-Christmas-all-the-time lineup. "Every time we play the song, we receive phone calls and e-mails from people asking where they can find a copy of it," Falconi said. "And because we're streaming online, some of those calls and e-mails are from as far away as South Carolina and Iowa."
The out-of-state callers are most often New England transplants who miss what Boston looks and feels like at Christmas, just as Melody did while living in New York.
The first time Paul Vella of Billerica heard "Christmas in Boston" on the radio, he called the station. Falconi put him in contact with Melody, and he has since obtained a copy of the song.
"The song brings me back to my younger days of sledding, making snowmen, and taking the T to Harvard Square to shop," Vella said.
In addition to celebrating the city, "Christmas in Boston" pays tribute to two doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital. A line in the song - "There are wise men in Cambridge, and angels at Mass. General" - refers to Drs. Laura Riley and Jan Shifren, who helped Melody and his wife, Cassandra, conceive a child after seven years. Their daughter, Reilly (named after Dr. Riley), is now 3 years old, and the couple is expecting their second child in January.
Riley said she's flattered by the song and sentiment.
"Being in the healthcare field, it's always nice to know you've touched someone's life in a special way," she said. "Also, I grew up in Dorchester, so all of the Christmas images in Jim's song are very familiar to me."
As such, "Christmas in Boston" is becoming a familiar fixture on the holiday music scene. Melody played his song in the studio on WRKO and is slated to play it live on Oldies 103.3 in the coming weeks. And now anyone can get a copy: The CD will soon be available for download on Melody's website, James-Melody.com, where for now you can go and have a listen. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Mass. General Hospital for Children.
