Christmas Spirit Brings Top Acts to Record in S.D.

SAN DIEGO —  Four years ago, nearly 20 big-name recording artists got together in the studio as Band Aid and cut a single called “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia.

This year, in a San Diego-only benefit, an equally formidable cast of major-league pop, rock and country stars--from Brian Wilson and Stevie Nicks to Loretta Lynn and the Oak Ridge Boys--will contribute a song each to “The Stars Come Out for Christmas,” a compilation of Christmas tunes to benefit Children’s Hospital & Health Center.

Organizers figure they can sell 12,000 copies of the local production, scheduled for late November release on cassette and compact disc only, which will be sold exclusively in San Diego via mail order at a price not yet determined.

According to the project’s producer, Steve Vaus, 100% of the proceeds will go to the nonprofit health-care facility.

“Nine or 10 years ago, I used to go to the hospital’s play room with my guitar each Christmas season and play carols for the kids,” said Vaus, who at the time was a struggling singer-songwriter in constant pursuit of more nightclub work.

But today, as the head of a successful production company and recording studio that, since 1984, has produced commercial jingles for dozens of local and national businesses, Vaus said he’s “finally in a position to help these kids in a substantially bigger way.”

“Roughly 40% of the hospital’s patients do not have the ability to pay for their health care,” said Vaus, 37, who is donating both his time and the use of his studio to the project. “So fund-raising is essential for the hospital to continue providing needy children with free medical treatment.

“I’ve always felt that those of us who have gifts or talents have a special responsibility to share those gifts or talents with those less fortunate. And what better time to do it than at Christmas?”

Most of the heavyweight contributors to the project are sending in previously recorded tracks, including Nicks (“Silent Night”), Lynn (“Shadrach the Black Reindeer”) and Lee Greenwood (“Oh Holy Night”).

But at least five will be flying into San Diego during the first two weeks in October to record fresh tracks--either standards or originals--at Vaus’ The Studio in Kearny Mesa.

Among them: Brian Wilson, with his own newly penned “Christmas All Around the World”; the Commodores, with their version of “We Three Kings,” and Juice Newton, with her arrangement of “The First Noel.”

“What’s significant about this project, aside from raising money for the hospital, is the fact that we’re accomplishing something in industry terms that people never thought possible--we’re getting major artists to record in San Diego,” Vaus said.

The idea of producing music to raise money for Children’s Hospital was first brought up several years ago, he said.

“I had done a theme song for the hospital for their annual telethon, and we discussed the possibility of making a charity album featuring only my material,” Vaus recalled. “But frankly, I didn’t think they would be able to raise too much money on that.

“Still, we kept talking for the next few years, and then maybe two months ago it struck me that perhaps we could get major artists to do Christmas carols for a compilation album.”

Vaus’ concept was enthusiastically endorsed by the hospital’s fund-raising arm, the Children’s Hospital Foundation, said telethon coordinator Sarah Boehmer.

“We were thrilled and delighted,” she said. “We rely heavily on fund-raising efforts in our community because of the amount of uncompensated care we provide to needy patients, and we’re always eager to explore other avenues to raise money aside from our annual telethon.”

Given the go-ahead, Vaus and Children’s Hospital Foundation volunteers immediately went to work.

The first step was lining up sponsors “so we could guarantee the participating artists that 100% of the proceeds would go to the hospital,” Vaus said.

Star Systems, an automated teller machine network, agreed to underwrite production, manufacturing and distribution costs--estimated at nearly $40,000. Eagle Limousines agreed to provide visiting artists with free transportation; the San Diego Marriott Hotel agreed to provide them with free accommodations. The next step was lining up the artists. In mid-August, Vaus said, he sent letters “to just over 100 acts, asking for their help.”

“It was pretty much a shotgun approach. We went through all the music trade magazines and pulled out the names of significant artists we thought would be able to either take a traditional Christmas song and do something special with it or else come up with a suitable original tune.

“There weren’t too many people we ruled out--except for such obvious ones as Ozzy Osbourne,” he laughed. “Somehow, we felt he just wouldn’t fit in on a Christmas album.”

The response, Vaus said, was overwhelmingly positive.

“We frankly didn’t have a clue about what to expect. Trying to pull together such a wide variety of top recording artists for an album benefiting a local charity, we didn’t know if we’d get turned down flat by everyone or what.

“But, as it turned out, we must have hit a common chord or two--Christmas and children. I’m really amazed by the fact that so many people have agreed to take part in this project. We’re forced to do a double album as opposed to our original intention of doing just a single, 10-song album.

“And I can’t tell you how many of these artists have told me this sounds to them like it’s going to be the most impressive Christmas record ever done, and that they’d like to get a personal copy not for their files, but for their enjoyment.”

Still, there were plenty of disappointments, Vaus said.

“We never heard back from Michael Jackson, we were rejected out of hand by Linda Ronstadt, and Kenny Rogers’ people said no, too. They told us that at this point in Kenny’s career, they felt his participation would lead to overexposure. I fail to see how 12,000 records, available only in San Diego, could lead to overexposure, but certainly they have a master plan for his career that makes sense to them.

“We also lost a couple of artists we wanted to have because they’re on Warner Bros. Records, the only major label that refused to cooperate. Emmylou Harris and Peter Cetera were each willing to contribute a previously recorded Christmas track they had done, but Warner Bros. has this corporate policy that doesn’t allow anyone to use their masters.”

This year’s benefit is the first, but hopefully not the last, Vaus said.

“We consider this to be a pilot for future years,” he said. “If we’re as successful as I think we’re going to be, I plan on doing this on an annual basis.”

His “ultimate dream,” Vaus added, “is to make these albums available nationwide to raise money not just for the Children’s Hospital in San Diego, but for all 170 hospitals around the country that are part of what they call the Children’s Miracle Network.