One of the coolest Christmas compilations you could ever hope to own – but you probably guessed that already, from the cover image that pays tribute to a classic set from James Brown! The JB image is certainly well placed – as most of the tracks here are deeply funky Holiday tunes – the kind of gritty seasonal ditties that were only ever issued as funky 45s back in the day – and most really only on a local level, too! Strut's really outdone themselves with this excellent collection – as it features a fair bit of Christmas rarities we've never heard before, but which are totally wonderful – all-new tunes, not common Christmas cover versions – played and performed with a hell of a soulful feel throughout. Knock that ol' Bing Crosby record off the turntable, and give this one plenty of spins this December – and dammit, the music's so great, you may well find yourself playing the collection well into the New Year too! Titles include "Boogaloo Santa Claus" by JD McDonald, "Angel's Christmas" by Wild Honey, "Black Christmas" by Harlem Children's Chorus, "Getting Down For Xmas" by Milly & Silly, "Soul Santa" by Funk Machine, "Funky Funky Christmas" by Electric Jungle, "Christmas Present Blues" by Jimmy Reed, "Santa's Got A Bag Of Soul" by Soul Saints Orchestra, "Christmas Morning (Sean Bonniwell edit)" by Zebra, "Let's Get It Together This Christmas" by Harvey Averne, "Auld Lang Syne" by Black On White Affair, and "The New Year" by Jimmy Jules & The Nuclear Soul System. CD

There's plenty of R&B Christmas collections on the market, but this is one of the best – a really well-done collection that goes way past the over-played hits, and features some really rare treasures in the genre! Although a holiday set, this one's put together with the same depth and care of Ace Records' usual rare soul collections – and features a well-chosen batch of obscure singles, mostly from the west coast and Memphis scenes of the 50s – all supported by great notes, top-shelf packaging, and a really overstuffed set list! CD features 20 tracks in all – including "White Christmas" by Hadda Brooks, "Christmas Celebration" by BB King, "Christmas Time" by The Debonaires, "I Wanna Spend Christmas With You (parts 1 & 2)" by Lowell Fulsom, "My Christmas Baby" by Smokey Hogg, "White/Hot Christmas" by The Elves, "Santa Claus Boogie" by The Voices, "I Want You With Me Xmas" by Jesse Belvin, "God Gave Us Christmas" by Oscar McLollie & His Honey Jumpers, and "Christmas Bells" by Bobby Nunn. CD

There's plenty of R&B Christmas collections on the market, but this is one of the best – a really well-done collection that goes way past the over-played hits, and features some really rare treasures in the genre! Although a holiday set, this one's put together with the same depth and care of Ace Records' usual rare soul collections – and features a well-chosen batch of obscure singles, mostly from the west coast and Memphis scenes of the 50s – all supported by great notes, top-shelf packaging, and a really overstuffed set list! Titles include "Christmas Celebration" by BB King, "Santa Claus Baby" by The Voices, "White Hot Christmas" by The Elves, "I Wanna Spend Christmas With You" by Lowell Fulsom, "I Want You With Me Christmas" by Jesse Belvin, "Dig That Crazy Santa Claus" by Oscar McLollie & The Honey Jumpers, "Crazy Santa Claus" by The Debonaires, "Gonna Have A Merry Xmas" by The Nic Nacs, "Merry Christmas Baby" by Mari Jones, "Christmas Bells" by Bobby Nunn, and "Xmas Baby" by Riff Ruffin. LP, Vinyl record album