Track Listing

1. O Tannenbaum
2. Away In A Manger
3. The Christmas Song
4. Ring Christmas Bells
5. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen Part One, Part two
6. It Came Upon A Midnight Clear
7. Hell's Bells
8. Jesus Maria
9. Jingle Bells
10. O Holy Night
11. Joy To The World

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #380 in Music
• Released on: 2009-11-03
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .21 pounds

Album Description
Christmas music has been an enthusiasm of Carla Bley's for decades, and both traditional and non-traditional seasonal pieces are here subjected to her offbeat wit and idiosyncratic arranging skills. The material includes her inimitable arrangements of Christmas classics and a brace of Carla's own pieces - "Jesus Maria" (first recorded by Jimmy Giuffre back in 1961), and, giving the devil his due, "Hell's Bells". Carla's Christmas Carols was recorded in La Buissonne Studios in the South of France after a whirlwind tour of Europe at the end of 2008, and folds in two pieces from that tour (recorded live in Berlin). The pleasure that the musicians find in the material is unmistakable and, perhaps particularly after a glass of mulled wine, contagious.

Customer Reviews

Carla Bley serves up a jazz classic
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.

Wonderful!
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.

Jazzalicious!
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.