Christian music artist to play INB

Christian music mainstay Michael W. Smith has made plenty of friends in his more than 30-year career. Some of them are more expected than others.

The three-time Grammy winner collaborates on his newest album with the likes of former Christian singer and longtime friend Amy Grant and her husband, Vince Gill. He also taps country superstar Carrie Underwood and blue-eyed soul singer Michael McDonald.

But then there’s Bono. Yes, U2 frontman Bono, he of the wrap-around sunglasses and leather jackets.

Bono recites a spoken-word piece on the track “The Darkest Midnight” on Smith’s newest holiday release. So, how did the rock star and the Christian singer come together?

“I’ve had the good fortune to know Bono for a number of years,” Smith said in an email interview with the (Modesto) Bee. “I’m a fan of what he’s done with his platform and especially the ONE.org campaign. I’ve always wanted to collaborate with him on something.

“We found this amazing spoken-word piece that we wanted on the project and knew he would do it in a unique way – so I asked. After he did the read on the poem, we did a musical bed under it that fit his read and, in a way, fit his personality. I think it turned out pretty cool.”

The cool collaborations of Bono and others fill Smith’s newly released “Michael W. Smith & Friends: The Spirit of Christmas,” the artist’s fourth holiday album. He will bring the songs of the season to the INB Performing Arts Center on Thursday.

His other seasonal releases are “Christmas” (1989), “Christmastime” (1998) and “It’s a Wonderful Christmas” (2007). So why another Christmas-focused album?

“Well, I obviously love Christmas music,” he said. “When I was growing up, my sister and I would pull out the Christmas records literally months before Christmas! After doing three Christmas projects, I didn’t really even think about doing another one.

“Then last year, Robert Deaton, who produces the CMA Awards and CMA Country Christmas, invited me to do a duet with Jennifer Nettles on the CMA Christmas show. I was barely off the stage from the rehearsal before Robert was talking to me about a duets project. He already had amazing ideas about the … project, who could sing what song, even the sequence of the songs.

“Things fell into place quickly and here I am with a fourth Christmas record.”

Veteran country music producer Deaton helped bring in the likes of Nettles, Little Big Town, Lady Antebellum and Martina McBride to the project. Smith said the genre plays to his roots and into his natural relationships.

Smith’s career has been a dream of sorts since its start in 1983. The 57-year-old singer and songwriter has charted 28 No. 1 hits, sold more than 15 million albums and taken home more than 40 Dove Awards.

This “The Spirit of Christmas” Tour will feature fellow contemporary Christian singer Rachael Lampa.

The look of his new Christmas album and tour promotions is also different for Smith. The sandy-blond singer slicks back his hair and dons a dapper three-piece suit on the cover. He said it, and the tour, will be a throwback to the look and sounds of Christmastimes past.

“I grew up back when Firestone and Goodyear tire stores were putting out compilation Christmas records with some amazing artists,” he said. “It was also a time when people like Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole and Andy Williams were being played all the time at Christmas. So I wanted to pay homage to the influence those records had on me. It’s pretty amazing – you’re still hearing those records played on the radio today around Christmastime. I think that’s pretty great.”