New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Guitarist and singer-songwriter
Peter Mayer, of Jimmy Buffett's
Coral Reefer Band and The
Peter Mayer Group, has released his first illustrated book for all ages, entitled A Junkman's Christmas Eve. The tale of Ernie the Junkman's journey to Christmas is a story rooted in Mayer's childhood and is brought to life with vibrant illustrations by artist and illustrator Phyllis London. Her work hangs in private, public and corporate collections across the country and she is a Signature Artist Member of the Noyes Museum of Art.
"One Christmas when I was very young, our family gathered around the Christmas tree to open gifts. Crisis struck when my parents realized they had come up short in the present count for me," said
Peter Mayer, author of A Junkman's Christmas Eve. "My father went to his tool bench and quickly rescued four or five pieces of 'junk' - a lighter that wouldn't light and other discarded odds and ends. He wrapped them all in newspaper and brought the newly christened 'gifts' out to me, a wide-eyed 4-year-old."
It's from this memory that Mayer wrote a song called A Junkman's Christmas, which he has performed at his celebrated annual Stars and Promises Christmas tour throughout the country. The book pairs the lyrics of the song with artist Phyllis London's detailed and colorful illustrations to tell the story of Ernie the Junkman and his journey to Christmas. While so many families come together to celebrate songs of hope, joy and peace at Christmas, Ernie finds these qualities to be hard-won in his worn-out world. The final page allows readers to scan their smartphones or tablets over a QR code to listen to the song A Junkman's Christmas while paging through the book.
Mayer added, "I have always been a great lover of Christmas music and its themes of hope and renewal. My first book A Junkman's Christmas Eve was born of a Christmas blessing that my father passed on to me that night in
India so long ago - reminding me that one is never too far gone to be loved, significant and useful and that out of broken pieces comes a beautiful thing."
A Junkman's Christmas Eve is now available for purchase via Amazon.com and LittleFlockMusic.com. For more information on The
Peter Mayer Group, visit www.petermayer.com. For more information on Phyllis London, visit www.phyllislondon.com.
Peter Mayer is a recording artist, songwriter and touring musician. He has released 13 albums to date and tours year-round with his band The
Peter Mayer Group. For the past 27 years, he has performed and recorded with Jimmy Buffett's
Coral Reefer Band and shared the stage with a variety of artists such as Paul McCartney,
James Taylor, Dave Matthews,
Paul Simon and Ringo Starr. For more information on
Peter Mayer, visit www.petermayer.com.
