Shinedown singer records Lennon holiday anti-war song

Shinedown vocalist Brent Smith has recorded a solo acoustic cover of the classic John Lennon holiday antiwar song, "Happy Christmas (War Is Over)," which is being released to radio stations this month. While Smith doesn't consider Shinedown a political band in any way, he told us that guitarist Jasin Todd does have a personal connection to the current conflicts: "Jasin's brother, he's a soldier, that's all you need to know. And he's had already three tours of duty in Afghanistan, and he hasn't even seen his family in a year. And, you know, he's still got to do, like, another two years over there."

The band traveled earlier this month to the Middle East, where it played several shows for U.S. troops in Kuwait and Iraq.

Shinedown is nominated for two 2006 Billboard Music Awards, which will air live on Fox this Monday (December 4th) at 8 p.m. ET. The band is up for modern rock artist of the year and rock artist of the year.

Shinedown is spending most of December on the road, alternating between headlining gigs and shows with bands like Godsmack, Staind and Saliva.

The group played on Friday, December 1st, in University Park, Pennsylvania with Godsmack.