A wonderful Holiday album that's stayed fresh for years – a date that was maybe done as a seasonal one-off for singer Ella Fitzgerald, but one that's gone on to become one of her best-selling records of all time! Ella's got a perfect style to interpret these numbers – upbeat and swinging, very much as promised in the title – with a quality that makes the tunes move, and avoids some of the too-blue and more melancholy modes that can sometimes get in the way of making a Christmas jazz vocal album work this well! Fitzgerald has great arrangements here – working with Frank DeVol and Russ Garcia – on a set of lightly jazzy versions of Christmas favorites like "Sleigh Ride", "Jingle Bells", "Winter Wonderland", "White Christmas", "Frosty The Snowman", and one of the best versions of "What Are You Doing New Years Eve" ever recorded! Plus, this 2LP set has a full album of bonus tracks – titles that include "Christmas Island", "We Three Kings/Little Town Of Bethlehem", "The Secret Of Christmas", "Holiday In Harlem", and "Santa Claus Got Stuck In My Chimney" – plus duets with Louis Armstrong on "Gee Baby Ain't I Good To You" and "I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm" – and with Louis Jordan on "Baby It's Cold Outside". (Holiday Music, Vocalists)LP, Vinyl record album
(Includes a nice booklet – with totally cool cut out holiday ornaments!)
A really dark little album of vocal jazz from 50s singer Barbara Lea – recorded here with small combo backing, and a strange sound that's a fair bit different than most other efforts of this type from the time! At one level, there's definitely a leaner 50s vocal jazz approach going on – similar to work on Bethlehem – but Barbara also serves things up with some odd notes of nostalgia and sentimentality, echoing earlier eras not in the style of the music, but almost in a sense of sadness and wistfulness that comes through in her vocals. The style's quite a change from the iciness of other postwar chanteuses – but it's also not as overly emotional as those from other eras either. Players in the groups include Dick Cary on piano, Jimmy Raney on guitar, Johnny Windhurst on trumpet, and Jimmy Lyons on piano. Titles include "Will I Find My Love Today", "Sleep Peaceful Mr Used To Be", "Am I In Love", "Autumn Leaves", "We Could Make Such Beautiful Music Together", and "More Than You Know". LP, Vinyl record album
A groovy batch of Christmas carols from the Singers Unlimited, harmonizing in their trademark mellow, jazzy style over some nice arrangements by group member Gene Puerling! The feel is very sweet – fantastically harmonic, and set to impeccable MPS production – and most of the tunes here are taken in short versions that slide groovily into one another. Titles include "Deck The Halls", "Caroling Caroling", "Nigh Bethlehem", "It Came Upon The Midnight Clear", "Silent Night", "Joy To The World", 'Wassail Song", "Good King Wenceslas", "Oh Come All Ye Faithful" and "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas". (Holiday Music, Vocalists)LP, Vinyl record album
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