it came upon a Bb minor diminished 7th clear

December 22, 2011 7:20 PM

Jazz does Christmas: Charlie Parker - Bill Evans - Chet Baker - Kenny Burrell - Dexter Gordon - Oscar Peterson and Louie Armstrong.
posted by flapjax at midnite (24 comments total)

More jazz Christmas links welcome! (and, if you can find any, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, etc.)
posted by flapjax at midnite at 7:22 PM on December 22, 2011

Vince Guaraldi?
posted by jquinby at 7:30 PM on December 22, 2011 [2 favorites]

Vince Guaraldi ?

Too obvious!

Just kidding!
posted by flapjax at midnite at 7:34 PM on December 22, 2011

This is the best thing ever, flapjax. Thanks.

Oh, I do know this one crazy guy in Japan who got together with a tuba player and made a fantastic version of "Jingle Bells" which everyone should hear.
posted by koeselitz at 7:34 PM on December 22, 2011 [1 favorite]

Sonny or Trane? (steely-eyed stare)

TRANE
posted by HopperFan at 7:38 PM on December 22, 2011

Dave Brubeck Quartet
posted by John Cohen at 7:55 PM on December 22, 2011 [1 favorite]

Can't find Grover Washington's "Blue Christmas," so I guess "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" will suffice.

The former can be found on "A Jazzy Wonderland" compilation. I also pull out "Hot Jazz for a Cool Night: A Jazz Christmas" every year.

And more soul than jazz, but you just can't beat Lou Rawls' "Little Drummer Boy."
posted by TheSecretDecoderRing at 7:57 PM on December 22, 2011

Ella.
posted by trip and a half at 8:01 PM on December 22, 2011

Jimmy Smith
posted by timsteil at 8:07 PM on December 22, 2011

Eartha Kitt - Santa Baby
posted by marsha56 at 8:12 PM on December 22, 2011

I may have to put together a playlist and submit it to our local jazz station as a counter to the local stations that have been playing the same Christmas crap over and over for weeks now.
posted by Ickster at 8:45 PM on December 22, 2011

I love the title, by the way.
posted by Ickster at 8:46 PM on December 22, 2011

Fact: Chet Baker was born and Oscar Peterson died on December 23rd.

Not the same December 23rd, mind you, but still, free-kay.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 9:08 PM on December 22, 2011

Louis Armstrong: 'Zat You, Santa Claus? (1953) We just played this one at Turkey Jam. Seems appropriate to play midway between Hallowe'en and Christmas. I guess this one is no secret anymore, what with all the covers and being used in TV/movies.

Miles Davis / Bob Dorough: Blue Xmas (To Whom it may concern) (1962).

Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross: Deck Us All With Boston Charlie (1959?) Helps if you're familiar with the Pogo comic strip.

Dave Brubeck Quartet: Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town (1962) (Oops, already covered.)

John Coltrane: My Favorite Things (1961), often thought of as a Christmas song.
 
posted by Herodios at 9:58 PM on December 22, 2011 [2 favorites]

The Duke's Nutcracker: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

There's also lots of great stuff in this AskMe from last year.
posted by Westringia F. at 4:51 AM on December 23, 2011

Man, that Bill Evans is one of my favorite Christmas tracks. He turns a completely tired tune inside out, opening it up in such a beautiful, fascinating way. Crank it; you'll see what I mean. It's on this collection of Milestone Xmas jazz, which not only has a high hit-to-miss ratio but is also an unbelievably cheap cutout.
posted by mediareport at 5:23 AM on December 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

Duke Ellington - Jingle Bells - insanely good
Louis Prima - What Will Santa Claus Say (When He Finds Everybody Swingin')
I have a soft spot for groovy remixes, too.
posted by mediareport at 5:54 AM on December 23, 2011

We also had a post on Jazz Christmas music yesterday, lots of links there.
posted by SpiffyRob at 6:30 AM on December 23, 2011

I love this thread!!

For a groovy non-remix of I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm, my favorite is Billie Holiday - I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm (1959).


Chet Baker was born and Oscar Peterson died on December 23rd.
Eartha Kitt [Santa Baby linked above] died on Christmas Day in 2008, after an amazing life.

posted by Westringia F. at 6:33 AM on December 23, 2011 [1 favorite]

We also had a post on Jazz Christmas music yesterday, lots of links there.

I missed that one!
posted by flapjax at midnite at 7:12 AM on December 23, 2011

mediareport mentions Louis Prima's "What Will Santa Claus Say," but I've always been partial to his fabulously high-riding "Shake Hands With Santa Claus."
posted by koeselitz at 7:26 AM on December 23, 2011

Concert promoter and crate digger Andy Cirzan puts together a holiday mix tape every year, and the nice folks over at Sound Opinions are nice enough to share it. This year he put together 40 minutes of swinging jazz; you can get it here, and also listen to the show where he spins some Christmas soul and some of his favorite oddities.

Also, "Blue Xmas" - Miles Davis feat. Bob Dorough.
posted by hydrophonic at 3:55 PM on December 23, 2011

Oh, indeed. Jimmy Smith did an excellent Christmas album on Verve in 1964. One of my favorite album covers ever.

Grooveshark doesn't have the whole album, but at least give 'God Rest Ye Merry Gentlmen' a spin.
posted by barrett caulk at 4:12 PM on December 23, 2011

And for a bonus hit of groovin' holiday homo-eroticism, hows about Jimmy Smith and Wes Montgomery doing Baby It's Cold Outside?
posted by barrett caulk at 4:15 PM on December 23, 2011