Jazz For A Christmas Present CD

Jazz for a Christmas Present is a no-frills collection from Savoy Jazz that compiles 19 holiday songs from the vaults of Muse records. The track list is drawn from Christmas albums by Etta Jones and Houston Person, and also includes two songs by the cheesy, over-produced vocal group the Ritz. The Etta Jones songs come from her 1990 Muse release Christmas with Etta Jones (which also has backing form Person), the Houston Person tracks are taken from his 1994 Muse release Christmas with Houston Person and Friends (one of whom was, you guessed it, is Etta Jones). Some of the other musicians Person had on his Christmas album were Della Griffin, Melvin Sparks, and Grady Tate, all of whom are featured on this disc. The music is pleasant and heartwarming, Person sounds as powerful and dead-on as always (proving himself to be one of the best tenors still around) and while Jones' vocals are not as strong as they were in her prime, they still have enough verve to run circles around her younger competition. Of special note are Jones' fine bluesy treatment of "Merry Christmas, Baby," and her powerhouse take on "Santa Baby." This low-priced collection will bring joy to jazz fans and holiday music fans alike. Just make sure you program over the Ritz tracks. ~ Tim Sendra

2 Cds