A Jazz & Blues Christmas

A Jazz & Blues Christmas
Putumayo · 2008 · 46 Mb

01. Christmas Celebration · B.B. King
02. Santa's Blues · Charles Brown
03. Wrap Yourself in a Christmas Package · R.Greer & I.Terraza
04. Santa Baby · Emilie Claire Barlow
05. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer · Ray Charles
06. Here Comes Santa Claus · The Ramsey Lewis Trio
07. Merry Christmas Baby · The Dukes of Dixieland
08. The Christmas Blues · Topsy Chapman & Lars Edegran
09. Xmas Baby · Riff Ruffin
10. All I Ask for Christmas · Mighty Blue Kings


Review
The Putumayo label reliably delivers incredibly cool music, usually with around-the-world flair, but sometimes the focus is home-grown excitement. In fact, just last season I reviewed Putumayo's excellent New Orleans Christmas on this site. A natural outgrowth of New Orleans Christmas, Putumayo's A Jazz & Blues Christmas serves up more sizzlin' seasonal standards.

Although the music ends far too quickly (after 33 minutes), it's top quality every bar of the trip. Surprisingly, I enjoyed this ride even more than last year's New Orleans Christmas adventure. The highlights here are just astoundingly high, and that makes this album mighty easy to embrace. B.B. King reigns over all he surveys with his raspy opener Christmas Celebration, and Ray Charles absolutely kills with his outstanding Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. These two tracks alone are easily worth the price of admission. Wow!

Fans of soulful blues and traditional jazz will applaud A Jazz & Blues Christmas; it's the genuine article. Next time, Putumayo, please extend the seasonal offerings for at least 10 minutes more!
Carol Swanson/www.christmasreviews.com


A Jazz & Blues Christmas
Putumayo Presents New Orleans Christmas
Putumayo Presents Christmas Around The World