Customer Reviews

GRP Christmas Collection, Vol. 3

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

 

 

Listen to the sample of Feliz Navidad, I beg you. Too bad you can't hear the whole thing...but it is excellent, as are the other songs on this CD. I have also written reviews on the other two volumes of the GRP Christmas Collection CD's. Everyone with whom I share this music loves it. If you have all classical or pop Christmas CD's, these will add a nice variety to your collection. Some are jazzed up and funky, some are mellow and atmospheric. Highly recommend whole collection, and I beg GRP to issue more volumes! Dave Grusin, phone your office!

I concur with my fellow jazz enthusiasts - the entire GRP Christmas Collection is both a treasure and a necessity during the holiday season. The more you listen, the jollier you feel. My only complaint would be, "When is Volume IV going to surface?" Dave, Larry, you're on a roll - don't stop now!

I highly recommend this to anyone that likes smooth jazz and wants mood music for Christmas gatherings. Would also make a great stocking stuffer...

This christmas collection was recommended by a friend and colleague who is a jazz lover. On his recommendation, I ordered it and have been pleased. It will be played at our Christmas parties this year to add festivities. Highly recommend.

This third installment of GRP Christmas music is the least "Christmassy" of the three, but still has nice stuff that is well worth adding to your holiday playlist. Just don't expect friends and relatives who aren't jazz-savvy to appreciate everything here in the spirit of the season. For example, "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" by Ramsey Lewis and "O Little Town of Bethlehem" by David Benoit are nice jazz piano pieces but they take some liberties with the familiar melodies and don't dwell on them very long. Similarly, Dave Grusin does a beautiful job on "Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming," but most people don't recognize this as a Christmas song anymore (if they recognize it at all). And B.B. King's "Merry Christmas Baby" is done in his classic blues style, which will please his fans but will not make everyone feel festive. I can tell you from experience (providing background music for the office Christmas party) that tunes like this can provoke looks of puzzlement and even distain from uninitiated listeners.
I really like what Billy Taylor does with "Deck the Halls," and Diane Schuur's interpretation of "I'll Be Home For Christmas" (the only other vocal besides B.B. King's) is simply great. Overall, you may find this to be a better jazz album than Christmas album.