Tuesday, December 11, 2012

December 11: Jimmy Smith


Jimmy Smith - Christmas Cookin'

As past selections have shown, I'm a fan of quite a few jazz Christmas albums.  Having heard the same songs done a million times with very little variation, I find myself drawn to albums that shed new light on those songs.  A fresh take, as it were.  As a general rule, jazz - good jazz, at least - offers a fresh take on standard songs.
This is one of those albums.  I love Jimmy Smith's organ style, and it comes through here.  He pairs with a big band on a number of the tracks, but this album is at its best when Smith's organ is in the foreground.  This is a solid album, and it's perfect for this time of year.
One of my favorite tracks on here is his rendition of "Jingle Bells", but, unfortunately, I couldn't find a clip on YouTube.

"God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"



"Greensleeves"



"Silent Night"

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