Stephen Colbert Celebrates Christmas With Elvis Costello, Feist, Willie Nelson

Stephen Colbert will spend the holidays with Elvis Costello, Feist, John Legend, Willie Nelson and Toby Keith on the host's Comedy Central special A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All!. The one-hour special, scheduled to air on November 18th, has a plot about Colbert being snowed in in an upstate New York cabin, so he and his musical friends play tunes to pass the time. All the original songs were written by Fountains of Wayne's Adam Schlesinger and David Javerbaum, who also collaborated on the Broadway version of John Waters' Cry Baby. Jon Stewart will also be on hand, duetting with Colbert on "Hanukkah," while the entire ensemble will come together on "(What's So Funny About) Peace, Love and Understanding." A DVD of the special will hit shelves a week later, with proceeds benefiting the charity Feeding America.

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Song Stories

“The A Team”

Ed Sheeran | 2011

This debut track from the then-20-year-old British singer-songwriter has a dark story behind it. Sheeran says he culls songwriting inspiration from "viewing other people's situations," which, for the heroine in "The A Team," involves drug addiction and prostitution that began as a teen. Sheeran paints the woman's trials with haunting imagery such as "But lately her face seems/Slowly sinking, wasting/Crumbling like pastries." "I did a gig at a homeless shelter, [and the song] is about one of the women there. It's her story," he said.

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