december 2005 issue 278 free jazz now in our 31st year www.jazz-blues.com &blues report Christmas 2005 On CD Also... 31st Annual Holiday Gift Guide PART II December 2005 – January 2006 • Holiday Special • Issue 278 Published by Martin Wahl Communications Editor & Founder Bill Wahl Christmas Layout & Design Bill Wahl Operations Jim Martin 2005 Pilar Martin Contributors Michael Braxton, Mark Cole, On CD Chris Hovan, Nancy Ann Lee, Peanuts, Mark Smith, Duane one somewhat lesser-known song in- Verh and Ron Weinstock. cluded is her version of Irving Berlin’s “Count Your Blessings Instead Of Check out our new, updated web Sheep.” Krall, accompanying herself on page. Now you can search for CD piano, is heard with either Anthony Wil- Reviews by artists, Titles, Record liams or Russell Malone on guitar, either Labels or JBR Writers. Twelve years John Clayton or Ben Wolfe on bass and of reviews are up and we’ll be going Jeff Hamilton on drums, plus the all the way back to 1974! Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra for most tracks. Address all Correspondence to.... Jane Monheit, who is now on a ma- Jazz & Blues Report jor label with Epic Records, has also re- 19885 Detroit Road # 320 leased a sweet set of holiday songs. Rocky River, Ohio 44116 Other than “Have Yourself A Merry Little Main Office ...... 216.651.0626 Christmas,” “Santa Claus Is Coming To Editor's Desk ... 440.331.1930 DIANA KRALL Town” and “Sleigh Ride,” she picked a [email protected] different set of songs for her offering. The Web .................. www.jazz-blues.com Christmas Songs VERVE Copyright © 2005 Martin-Wahl Communications Inc. No portion of this publication may be JANE MONHEIT reproduced without written permission The Season from the publisher. All rights Reserved. EPIC Jazz Report was founded in Buffalo New The two most universally popular York in March of 1974 and began in Cleve- female vocalists in jazz today have re- land in April of 1978. We are subsidized cently released their first Christmas solely through advertisement and ask that albums. you support our advertisers. a W division of Diana Krall actually released a 3- artin-Wahl c o m m u n i c a t i o n s song EP in 1998 which came with a Cover photo of Sam Cooke courtesy classy 1999 desk calendar. Those of Michael Ochs Archives.com songs, Jingle Bells,” “Christmas Time Is Here” and “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” are reprised for this, better-known pieces include the above, her first full-length holiday CD. It is pos- plus “The Christmas Waltz,” “Moonlight sible that at least two of those are the In Vermont” and The Carpenters’ “Merry same recordings - but if so, they are Christmas Darling.” She does several we mixed much better. The rest of the 12 don’t hear too often, including “The Man favorites heard include “Let It Snow,” With The Bag” (a hit for Kay Starr in the “I’ll Be Home For Christmas,” “White 50s), “I Heard The Bells On Christmas Christmas,” “Sleigh Ride,” “Santa Day” and “My Grown Up List,” written Claus Is Coming To Town, “Winter by David Foster and Linda Thompson. Wonderland,” “The Christmas Song” Jane is accompanied by her regular and one for the following week - “What working quartet with the addition of a 7- Photo of Diana Krall by Sam Taylor Wood - Verve Records Are You Doing New Year’s Eve.” The piece horn section, which includes Lew PAGE TWO December 2005 – January 2006 • Holiday Special • Issue 278 Soloff and Andy Snitzer on four cuts and “Stay A Little Longer, Santa”, rocking do get a recipe for Hot Crab Dip instead! a string section on three others. Vibist harp courtesy of Carey Bell’s “Christ- There is also a Traditional Songs for David Samuels adds his touch to “The mas Train”, bayou variations courtesy the Holidays CD in this series, which Christmas Waltz.” This comes in both of C.J. Chenier and Marcia Ball, moody includes such names as Mariah Carey, the standard CD and DualDisc versions. swing by way of Roomful Of Blues. If Aretha, Luther Vandross, James Tay- Although both these albums are in you know the artists, you get the idea. lor, Willie Nelson, Johnny Mathis, Nat a similar vein, the singers themselves The originality and the strength of the King Cole and a pairing of songs by are quite different in that Monheit sings tunes make this a disc that can take Bing Crosby and David Bowie (how’d with more drama than the naturally laid over a Christmas playlist. Any Alliga- that happen?); and a Classical Favor- back Krall. They both handle these holi- tor artists not mentioned so far are most ites for the Holidays with music per- day chestnuts very well and the back- likely here too. Blues people, this is formed by James Galway, The New ing is top notch. If you are getting re- holiday cash well spent. Duane Verh York Philharmonic, Placido Domingo, ally sick of hearing Mannheim Steam- Boston Pops Orchestra and others. Go roller or whatever when you go to the to www.epicrecords.com for more song parents’, in-laws’ or grandparents’ MORE HOLIDAY CDS info on any of the three in the series. homes for the holiday season, you MARTHA STEWART SERIES Now, let’s go from Martha Stewart might want to lay one or both of these to something completely different. Juan EPIC/LEGACY on them to make your season brighter. Oskar is a trumpet and keyboard player I’m sure they will all like either one.I JUAN OSCAR from Arizona who has released a really pretty much like them both about the JUAN OSCAR MUSIC different Christmas album on his own same, hence the alphabetical order for STEVE LUKATHER & label titled Christmas Is For Grownups the review. Too. Oskar says the album was inspired For more info on these, go to FRIENDS by The Trans Siberian Orchestra, The www.ververecords.com for the Krall, or FAVORED NATIONS Ventures, Handel, Mannheim Steam- www.epicrecords.com for the Monheit. KENNY ELLIS roller, Mason Williams, J. S. Bach, Bill Wahl FAVORED NATIONS Beethoven, Aaron Copland & “The 21st Century Chairman of the Board” and GENUINE HOUSEROCKIN’ DAVID LEONHARDT Herb Alpert. What a crew! As you might CHRISTMAS JAZZ GROUP expect, the music is all over the map ALLIGATOR RECORDS BIG BANG RECORDS covering songs with Latin/Salsa, rock, REPRINTED FROM OUR ballad/easy listening and dance/club NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2003 ISSUE CRAIG CHAQUICO mix flavorings. There are 24 songs in Trimming the tree, wrapping pre- HIGHER OCTAVE MUSIC all, with Oscar providing much of the sents, a few friends over for some cheer, I have never been a fan of Martha music on the Yamaha Motif ES6 key- a full-blown Yuletide bash- what could Stewart, so I immediately laughed board/synth. He also plays trumpet on enhance a blues lover’s holiday scene when her Jazz for the Holidays CD about half the songs, sings in Spanish more than tracks from a tough roster of showed up on my desk. But, when I fi- on some and has some guest female artists? Originals, for one thing. With a nally looked at it, I was quite surprised. vocalists for some others. This is some couple of exceptions, the fare on Genu- This is actually a very nicely chosen, fun stuff, but to see if it is your cup of ine Houserockin’ Christmas is self- varied set of Christmas songs. It is part tea, go to www.juanoscar.biz and navi- penned by the respective artists and of a Stewart Holiday Series recently gate to the page with the face in the reflects the character of each. It lays out released on Epic/Legacy Records. This CD. Then click on it. Then you can lis- like this- deep double-entendre from covers the gamut from some older cuts ten to most of the songs. What did we Little Ed & The Blues Imperials, inno- from Louis Armstrong, Peggy Lee & ever do without the internet? cently titled “Christmas Time”, sassy Benny Goodman, Louis Prima and Since we are in different mode now, seduction from Shemekia Copeland, Eartha Kitt all the way to offerings by let’s stay there for a while. Steve Wynton Marsalis, Terence Blanchard, Lukather & Friends has released Give the Supreme Gift! and Chris Botti. In between are fare Santamental (I spelled it right) on Fa- such as Dexter Gordon’s wonderful ver- vored Nations Records. Mixing rock sion of “Have Yourself A Merry Little and blues with jazz they serve up a set Christmas,” Herbie Hancock & Chick of eight well-known holiday songs and Corea teaming up for “Deck The Halls,” two originals. Guitarist Lukather’s Tuck Andress heard on solo guitar for friends on board for the trip include rock “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer,” guitarists Steve Vai and Eddie Van Tony Bennett on “Santa Claus Is Com- Halen, saxist Edgar Winter and percus- ing To Town,” and more from Duke sionist Lenny Castro. Lukather says Ellington, Grover Washington Jr., they cut the whole record in a day and Read The Review at jazz-blues.com Russell Malone and Tex Beneke & The Click the Featured Story Tab a half “with no click tracks, no pro-tools, Glenn Miller Orchestra. There is no re- no bullshit, just two-inch analog tape.” & see Smitty’s Pick #14 on Page 15 cording/personnel information at all of this Holiday Special Edition He also says he couldn’t pay the guests other than the set list, but being that Sign up at www.bluescruise.com what they are worth so he’ll be taking this is a Martha Stewart production you their garbage out for the rest of his life.