Song of the Day 12/18: The Philly Specials & Mt. Joy, “Santa Drives an Astrovan”

Jason Kelce and his erstwhile offensive linemates on the Philadelphia Eagles released the third and what they say will be their final charity Christmas LP, “A Philly Special Christmas Party,” late last month. The success of the first two albums helped them land some big-name guest artists this time around, including Philly natives Boyz II Men. They even roped in Stevie Nicks through her friendship with Taylor Swift, who you might have heard is the main squeeze of Jason’s brother Travis.

They also collaborated with a less-celebrated band with local ties. Mt. Joy formed when Matt Quinn and Sam Cooper, classmates at Conestoga High School in Chester County, each moved to Los Angeles to break into the music business. They reconnected there in 2016, naming themselves for a hill in Valley Forge National Park, and released a song with a catchy sing-along chorus about a doobie-smoking Jesus driving an Astrovan down Sunset Strip.

“Astrovan” quickly took off on Spotify, and Mt. Joy became the rare overnight sensation that really happened that fast. It took two more years to release their first album, and they’ve spent most of the time since on the road, playing festivals from Bonnaroo to Firefly to the Newport Folk Festival and opening for acts like Dave Matthews and the Lumineers.

For the Christmas Party LP, Quinn rewrote the lyrics to “Astrovan” with some Philly- and holiday-specific references, and now Santa rather than Jesus is driving the titular vehicle. The ever-hyperactive Kelce actually went out and found a used Chevy Astro, which GM stopped making in 2005, and had it repainted for the video, as shown on this making-of-the-video video. It was well worth it for the shot of Kelce howling out the passenger-side window while rolling under the Market-Frankford El.

This is what “Astrovan” sounds like without the Christmas lyrics. Mt. Joy was so unknown when they recorded it they couldn’t even afford a basic music video.