‘Hallelujah,’ Ernie White and Richie Sambora

The poster for this year’s Christmas Benefit Concert by Ernie White and Friends.

Ernie White is one of the pillars of the Trenton rock scene and has, for the last 15 years, hosted annual holiday benefit concerts in or near the city. Over the years, the shows have raised more than $100,000 for various charities.

The singer-songwriter-guitarist’s credits include major label albums with the bands Aviator and Sam the Band, as well as songwriting on Richie Sambora’s 1998 solo album, Undiscovered Soul. And at White’s 2013 holiday concert, Sambora was among the surprise guests, performing on several songs, including a soulful cover of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” Check out the video below.

The 2014 holiday show takes place Dec. 21 at the Grand Ballroom of Princeton Manor Banquet in Hamilton. Proceeds will benefit the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen. For information, visit erniewhite.com.

Sambora, of course, is mainly known for his decades in Bon Jovi, though it appears that his temporary leave of absence has grown into a permanent one. Of course he could always return at some point, but it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen anytime soon.

New Jersey celebrated its 350th birthday from Sept. 2014 to Sept. 2015. And in the 350 Jersey Songs series, we marked the occasion by posting 350 songs — one a day, for almost a year — that have something to do with the state, its musical history, or both. The complete list is here.