Customer Reviews

Carla's Christmas Carols

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Carla Bley has a remarkable musical sensibility, and brings together a wonderful ensemble here that's as comfortable serving up warm chorale-like brass arrangements as it is bursting into solo on top of a swinging jazz bass line (often in the same song). The arrangements are creative masterpieces - at once lyrical and humorous - with rich, unexpected chord voicings that will reward serious listeners without alienating the mainstream. The jazz world has always had a special connection with Christmas music - from Dexter Gordon's emotional take on Mel Torme's "Christmas Song" to Vince Guaraldi's lonely "Christmas Time is Here". The best tunes of the genre contain warmth, playfulness, and always a hint of sadness at the passing of time. This record so full of personality will sit well next to the classics of the idiom. It's a fantastic album.

Great recording. Emotional, but without getting sentimental. With love to the classic christmas melodies, but at the same time with delicate irony. Wonderful. Especially "Holy Night" on the electric bass is brilliant.

Confession time: My ire for Christmas music reached an all time high earlier this decade. My busy job at the time during the holiday season was a contribution factor. The local radio station that my boss played around the clock was no help either. Each November/December, it would be the same renditions/recordings of the same songs done by the same people. Not only was it stifling music (Leo Kottke, one of my favorite guitarists, insists that you can't do anything new with a Christmas carol anymore), but there was no variation in the playlists. And it was like that for seven days a week. Put that together with cranky customers on the phone, I thought my blood veins would rupture.

One day recently I find out that Carla Bley has released a Christmas album, and I am torn. On one hand, Carla Bley is an artist; a composer, a musician who doesn't just roll out of bed and release yuletide crap to earn money. On the other hand, it's Christmas music. I decide to try it. And I like it.

One thing that I especially get is Bley taking liberties with melodies. For instance on "Away In A Manger," the note that matches the word "his" in the line "no crib for his bed" is flatted. That's awesome. If I tried to pull that off at a Christmas party, I would get dirty looks. The way she screws with the harmony of "O Tannenbaum" is equally cool.

Her combination of piano and brass ensemble adds a welcome blur of styles. Sometimes it sounds jazzy, other times it sounds like classical chamber as you can hear on "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen."

And Carla includes her own "Jesus Maria." Christmas music is saved.

Love this album. She is an incredible arranger and composer and the jazz is perfect for any event- background at a dinner for two or party for 30! I never tire of the music (as most holiday albums get boring!) and continue to listen to it now- and it's february!

On the one hand, there are far too many Christmas albums that do nothing new with the musical heritage (and often fall into sappiness). On the other, too many fall into mere novelty while straining to bring something new. Carla Bley, an accomplished composer, manages to offer interesting new takes on familiar material. Her respect for the tradition shines through, even while she gets playful in that particular Carla Bley manner. Recommended as a possible bridge between those who love the familiar and those who can get a little tired of the old chestnuts.

A fantastic addition to our family's collection of holiday music! Our kids (ages 13, 11 and 9) all love it as much as we. A great mix made up of mostly traditional pieces along with some of Carla's own pieces.

Anyone who enjoys Carla Bley's smart, understated, ironic and glorious music will be pleased with this collection. The Partyka Brass Quintet plays her charts beautifully, and a couple of the players also solo very capably, making this an excellent mix of fully-arranged music with passages of jazz-based soloing. While Bley's dry sense of humor is apparent in many instances (the bluesy rendering of "It Came Upon A Midnight Clear," a playful faux-reggae take on "Jingle Bells"), there are also plenty of examples where she plays it straight (a loving arrangement of Mel Tormé's "The Christmas Song") . She treats this material with equal parts affection, playfulness, and an arranger's sense of re-invention: "Away in a Manger" is transformed into a haunting elegy.
A highlight of the program is an original entitled "Hell's Bells" (it sounds much merrier than the title suggests), which reaches a joyous peak before it segues into an exquisite version of her classic ballad "Jesus Maria."
For anyone who feels a bit burned-out by the commercialized recycling of Christmas music (and that includes myself), this CD is a welcome antidote. Carla Bley has put her talents to making a lasting contribution to this timeless material, and made it possible to hear these songs again with fresh ears. I'm grateful for her gift.

This is a brilliant, amazing album. Buy it, listen to it and you will keep listening year after year.