If you crave a little more of a concert feel in your Christmas jazz swing, Wynton Marsalis and the JLCO pack that punch, complete with crowd applause and band introductions. Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis

Planning to host a snappy holiday cocktail party? Here’s your soundtrack. To celebrate the 80th anniversary of Count Basie’s famed Orchestra, director Scotty Barnhart and his 19-piece band have concocted a smooth, swinging album with guest vocal appearances by Johnny Mathis (It’s The Holiday Season) and Carmen Bradford (Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas). Big voice, big brass, big bass, and big sass: It’s A Holiday Soul Party is the best kind of party. Plenty of humour too with songs like the chuckle-worthy Big Bulbs. While it’s mostly a Christmas-oriented album, the super-groovy Eight Days of Hanukkah widens the scope a bit, mingling with a funked up version of Little Drummer Boy and a supercharged White Christmas. Not even cancer could stop Sharon Jones from recording one of the most fun holiday albums in a while. Definitely guiding Santa’s sleigh this year. The silly Flintstones send-up Yabba-Dabba Yuletide is far from the groaner it could’ve been, and the jazzy Little Jack Frost is just plain cool. Here Comes Santa Claus features soulful backup singers, while Rockabilly Rudolph practically turns the red-nosed wonder into James Bond. Rockabilly wizard (and holiday perennial) Brian Setzer is having a whole lot of fun on this - his fifth - bold, brassy, electrifying reinvention of Christmas classics. I unwrapped 10 of the most notable and gave them a spin.ĬLICK HERE TO VIEW MORE PHOTOS, or tap and swipe the image on your mobile device.

The Christmas music crop of 2015 doesn’t offer anything that will completely revamp the snow-speckled holiday landscape, but there are some mighty fine offerings to be enjoyed. And every year, someone else gives them a spin, puts them down on record, and hopes they have made THE Christmas album that will become part of the canon. They have permeated your worst shopping nightmares and your favourite family memories. Manage Print Subscription / Tax Receipt.Vancouver Sun Run: Sign up & event info.

Best holiday albums 2015