Paul Williams Shares Stories Behind ‘Emmet Otter’s Jug Band Christmas’

American songwriter Paul Williams has touched a lot of hearts through his work in music. But beyond his better-known songs with groups like Daft Punk or The Carpenters, Williams has worked extensively with Jim Henson’s Muppet Studios, writing songs for The Muppet Movie, The Muppet Christmas Carol andEmmet Otter’s Jug Band Christmas. Each movie offers the signature Jim Henson kindhearted comfort mixed with wisecracking camaraderie and Williams songs often stand at the center of that vibe.

We caught up with Williams, who is also the current president and chairman of ASCAP, to ask him not only what it’s like to write a single song for a new movie, but what it’s like to write an entire soundtrack. We go song-by-song with the generous artist to ask him what it was like to write the five central tunes for the 1977 classic, Emmet Otter’s Jug Band Christmas.