🎄 Holidays! XMAS CD: Manhattan Transfer, "The Christmas Album"

[Rudy]

What better way to warm up a cold December day than to put on this 1992 Manhattan Transfer CD, The Christmas Album! Very nicely done, this album is actually a departure from a lot of the vocal gymnastics you'd find on your usual Manhattan Transfer recording. Instead, it's a silky smooth collection of holiday tunes, some common, some not so common (including a Beatles' White Album refugee, "Goodnight"). The band and the Transfer swing out on a few tunes (like the "Happy Holidays" medley and "Let It Snow"), but for the most part, ballads dominate. One of my favorite non-Christmas winter tunes, "Snowfall", opens the set. Tony Bennett shows up to lend a hand with "The Christmas Song," and the instrumental arrangements were all done by Johnny Mandel.

-= N =-

> Click here < to pick this one up from Amazon.

 

[snapcrotch]

Right on, Rudy. This is, by far, the most swinging jazz vocalese album of Xmas songs. And I usually cringe at the sound and sight of this genre, having passed on thousands of used LPs at yard sales, thrift shops, etc.
Until this 1992 venture with the brilliant arranger Johnny Mandel, the only standout of jazz vocal arranging on a Xmas CD IMHO is The Singers Unlimited's 'Christmas'. (Three of the Manhattan's vocal tracks are arranged by The Singers' arranger, Gene Puerling.) Both Mandel and Puerling are very selective about lending their talents and and abilities -- the recording effort and artist must be worthy...like Take 6, Shirley Horn, and Chanticleer.
On this CD, the joint sure is swinging. Ride on, Rudloph!

 

[snapcrotch]

Actually, there is a jazzy vocal precedent for this swinging album. It's the 1965 LP 'Chrismas Serenade' by The Modernaires, Columbia CS-9192. All songs are arranged by Alan Copeland, an early Modernaire himself, who left them in the late 50's to freelance in West Coast recording and TV studios until reuniting with 'The Mods' on this project (and a previous LP on United Artists). He then formed the Alaln Copeland Singers, who did 3 rather amazing albums for ABC. (Look for 'Basie Swinging, Voices Singing' and 'Cool Country'.)