courtesy of Naxos of America
Almost exactly a month ago, K&K Verlagsanstalt released what will probably go on record (pun intended) as the earliest Christmas recording of this or any forthcoming season. The title of the album is Santa Claus Is Coming To Town; and it presents thirteen tracks, most of which are likely to be recognized as Christmas favorites. The style is also likely to be familiar, performed by a group called the New Orleans Jazz Band of Cologne (previously known, until 2015, as the Maryland Jazz Band of Cologne). The album is part of a series entitled Castle Concerts produced by Andreas Otto Grimminger and Josef-Stefan Kindler, and the recording was made at a concert held at Bad Homburg Castle in Germany.
The ensemble is a sextet led by drummer Reinhard Küpper. All three front-line players, trumpeter Bruno van Acoleyen, trombonist Bart Brouwer, and clarinetist John Defferary, all contribute vocals. The rest of the rhythm is provided by Hans-Martin “Büli” Schöning on both banjo and guitar and Markus “Benny” Daniels on bass. Pianist Dominik Dötsch joins the group as guest pianist.
As the group’s name suggests, the style is basically good old-fashioned New Orleans. Every track is given a loving account with traditional, but enjoyable, improvisations to provide some distinctive uniqueness. Unless I am mistaken, one of those improvisations involved injecting a bit of “Just a Closer Walk with Thee” into “Here Comes Santa Claus.” I was also amused to find an account of Jack Fox’ “’Zat You Santa Claus,” although I doubt that anything will ever wean me away from Louis Armstrong’s treatment of the song!
There is more than enough on this album to inspire a bit of Christmas shopping, even if Halloween is more than a month away!
No comments:
Post a Comment