‘A lasting memento’ - Mark Murtha produces Christmas CD with Head East and other bands to raise money for charity

Mark Murtha, guitarist for the Midwestern rock band Head East, has produced a Christmas album that includes a collaboration with 40 artists from bands such as XYZ, Shooting Star, Vixen and The Rainmakers. It is available in CD format and sold at locations in Kansas City and in Jefferson City with all proceeds from sales going to benefit charities and non-profits. Courtesy of Mark Murtha

By Jeremy P. Ämick
 
Mark Murtha has found a way to share his charitable spirit with others while embracing his wife’s love of the Christmas season and his own experiences in recording and performing music. As the lead guitarist of the popular Midwestern rock band Head East, he has recently recruited many of his fellow musicians to come into the studio and record a Christmas album to raise money for various charities.  
 
Murtha mirthfully explained that his wife, Lisa, was one of the primary instigators behind his desire to pursue the recording of a rock and roll Christmas album. Noting her enjoyment of the holiday season, she casually remarked that it would be nice to have a new Christmas collection to listen to while driving.
 
“When we finished recording the most recent Head East album, “Full Circle,” in August of 2023, it was such a fun experience that I proposed to Roger (Roger Boyd, founding member of Head East) that we do a Christmas album. I recorded several demos of Christmas songs in the Head East style with keyboards and such and shared them with Roger.”
 
Unfortunately, because of competing schedules between those involved, the project did not materialize in time for Christmas 2023. However, Murtha went on to contact more than three dozen musicians with whom he had played during his lengthy career in performing music and was able to pull the project together for a Christmas 2024 release.

Three of the 23 songs appearing on the album titled “Mark Murtha’s Christmas Party in Kansas City” were recorded by Head East while the remainder were done with 40 musicians who volunteered their time and talents. The album took 15 months to complete and includes songs recorded in collaboration with artists associated with well-known bands such as XYZ, Vixen, Shooting Star, the Rainmakers and Vandelyn Kross.
 
Murtha shared, “I’m going to give the CD to local non-profits, who are then going to sell it as a fundraiser. I’m not making any money from this … it was certainly a labor of love for me.”
 
The CD will be available for purchase at Head East concerts with the proceeds going to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. It is also available at locations in the Kansas City area and Lawrence and Topeka, Kansas, raising money for everything from a food pantry to a pet rescue charity.
 
In Jefferson City, the Christmas CD will be available after Thanksgiving at Downtown Book and Toy with the proceeds from the sales going to the Silver Star Families of America, a Missouri-based organization honoring and assisting wounded military veterans.
 
As a professionally recorded, mixed and mastered album, Murtha maintains that it was his desire to make the album available in a physical media format despite it now being the age of music streaming and downloading.
 
“It’s available on Amazon for download and through all the major streaming services,” Murtha said. “But most of the songs are covers, so any revenue from the download sales will go to the publishers of the songs. I opted for CDs as well, because I’m old school and I like having the physical media available.”
 
He added, “I also wanted this project to result in something tangible that all performers could share with their friends and family and serve as a lasting memento of our friendship through the years. Also, the CD booklet is like a miniature yearbook of our musical class.”
 
For an updated listing of the locations where the CD can be purchased, please visit www.facebook.com/murthamusic.
 
“I really like the idea of using the Christmas CD to help non-profit organizations,” Murtha remarked. “To me, it was worth the expense to make something with my friends that sounds fantastic, and was incredibly fun to record.”
         
Jeremy P. Ämick is author of the biographies of the rock bands Missouri and Shooting Star.  
​

Three of the Christmas songs on the new CD were performed by Head East. Courtesy of Mark Murtha