Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Various: Christmas Jazz! -Volume 2

Various: Christmas Jazz! -Volume 2

By Dave Nathan
January 1, 2001
Sign in to view read count

Christmas music can be divided into three categories. The first pop tunes which happen to have the holidays as their theme. Then there is traditional Christmas music, songs whose only appearance comes during the holiday season. Finally, there's the Christmas music with religious or spiritual connotations. Nagel-Heyer's second CD of Christmas music deals mostly with the first category, with a sprinkling from the second and wisely stays away from the third.

This CD has material recorded from 1986 to 1998 and includes cuts from albums released under the Sackville and Arbors labels. Most of the tracks are from the same albums that comprise volume 1 of this series. But it's still good stuff. Charlie Bertini's trumpet is featured on perhaps the most poignant holiday pop song of all, "I'll Be Home for Christmas" familiar to every serviceman at an overseas post since it was written in 1943. Turning the mood 180 degrees, Bertini swings on "Frosty the Snowman". The trumpet player and his friends give this tune typical New Orleans jam session treatment featuring some excellent Allan Vache clarinet and Dave Garnnett tuba. One of the best-selling songs of all times "White Christmas" gets a romantic play by Jim Galloway's tenor, while the blues are added with Jay McShann's vocalizing on "Merry Christmas Baby". Mark Shane's X-mas Allstars get the bulk of playing time as they are responsible for four of the cuts. James Chirillo's guitar is front and center on an up tempo "Jingle Bells" while on "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" Chirillo and friends get a bit funky. Jon-Erik Kellso's trumpet, open and muted, gets a lot of play on this track. One of the albums highlights is an ardent rendition of "Silver Bells" sung by Linda Fields backed by a group headed by Jan Harrington.

All in all, this CD is good jazz whose theme happens to be the Christmas season. The performances can stand on their own any time of the year. Recommended.

Track Listing

Jingle Bells; Let It Snow; Merry Christmas; I'll Be Home for Christmas; At the Christmas Ball; God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen; White Christmas; Frosty the Snowman; What Will Santa Claus Say; We Three Kings; Silver Bells; Medley, Oh Du Fr

Personnel

Mark Shane - Piano; Harry Allen - Soprano Sax; James Chirillo- Guitar/Banjo; Pat O'Leary - Bass; Dave Ratajczak - Drums; Ralph Sutton - Piano; Jim Galloway - Tenor & Soprano Sax; Milt Hinton - Bass; Gus Johnson - Drums; Jay McShann - Piano/Vocals; Neil Swainson - Bass; Archie Alleyne - Drums; Charlie Bertini - Trumpet; Randy Morris - Piano; Dave Garnnett - tuba; Ed Metz Jr. - Drums; Jon-Erik Kellso - Trumpet; Allan Vach

Album information

Title: Christmas Jazz! -Volume 2 | Year Released: 2001

< Previous
2000 Rewind

Next >
Nocturnal

Comments

Tags

For the Love of Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

You Can Help

To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.