Dan Damon is the best jazz pianist you may have not heard of. Think Dave Brubeck and Vince Guaraldi. He’s that good. Add the brilliant sax of Lincoln Adler, the beautiful vocals of Sheilani Alix, and the rest of the stellar band; Kurt Ribak on acoustic bass, Carrie Jahde on drums, and Greg Sankovich grooving on the Hammond organ, and you have a world-class Christmas jazz album.
Throughout this recording, you will be captivated by the performance of the band and
especially the magical interplay of Damon and Adler. I cannot overstate how wonderful this is.
The songs vary from traditional and ancient Christmas carols to more modern Christmas
selections including two Dan Damon originals.
The album starts with elegant renderings of the beloved carols “Away In A Manger” and “I Saw
Three Ships”. The latter includes three verses by Damon that make this track more relevant to
the present day. He has a wonderful custom of doing this. The modern composition “Hunger
Carol” written by Shirley E. Murray and Saya Ojiri is a significant choice as it connects the birth
of Jesus to today with lyrics like: “Every child needs bread until the world is fed.”
The beautiful “Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming” dates back to the 14th century and it was first
published in 1582. Damon perfectly captures the ancient charm of this melody. it is followed by
the first Damon original, “Like a Child” and then Adler opens the well-known “O Little Town of
Bethlehem” with some outstanding blues-influenced sax playing that fans of this instrument will appreciate. It sets the tone beautifully. On the Catalan traditional tune “The Gift Carol,” Damon’s piano is simple and engaging, and then the African American Spiritual “Over My Head” has a true upbeat Gospel feel. The final Damon original “Winter’s Child” is a welcome nod to Vince Guaraldi with some fine bass work from Kurt Ribak.
“On This Day Earth Shall Ring” also has some ancient roots dating back to the 12th century. It
was translated by Jane Marian Joseph around 1917. Damon supplies a nice upbeat
arrangement here. We get a gently swinging interpretation of the well-known “Good King
Wenceslas”. And while there was a historical character named Wenceslas he was not a king but
a duke. However, Good King Wenceslas sounds a lot better than Good Duke Wenceslas!
“Peace Child” is another modern song with lyrics by Shirley E. Murray and music by Dan
Damon. The truly splendid jazz piano on “Silent Night” is a fitting conclusion.
This exquisite album will please fans of quality jazz and lovely Christmas music.
Connect with Dan Damon
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Reviewed by Larry Stephan
Larry Stephan has been a member of the UTR Media team for 12 years and frequently contributes to its content. You can find him online @larry.stephan.