If the traditional versions of Christmas songs don’t really appeal to you, there are still the albums released around this theme that focus on the most diverse music genres. Every year, a number of these albums are released. The German Bear Family Records is very early, because they are already releasing ‘Get Ready For A Groovy And Bluesy Christmas’. 28 tracks that guarantee a great end-of-year feeling. As the title already indicates, all songs can be classified in the genres authentic blues and rhythm & blues. To get you in the right ‘mood’ right away, The Jackson Trio serves up a festive instrumental with ‘Jingle Bell Hop’. Bill Doggett later signs for a jazzy Hammond instrumental song in ‘Winter Wondeland’.
‘Close harmony’ gives the Christmas period some extra cachet. Several tracks ensure this. The first comes from the vocal group The Moonglows with the rhythm & blues-modelled ‘Hey Santa Claus’. The Drifters certainly could not be missed in this genre. With lead singer Clyde McPhatter, you can hear them here in a beautiful bluesy arrangement of the classic ‘White Christmas’. More beautiful harmonies can also be found with The Voices. They perform with ‘Santa Claus Baby’ and ‘Santa Claus Boogie’. You can also place The Marcels in that genre. You can easily perform a few dance steps on ‘Merry Twist-Mas’. ‘Christmas In Heaven’ by Billy Ward and His Dominoes is also a beautiful example of how voices blend perfectly.
Moose Jackson presents a beautiful slow blues in the emotional ‘I’ll Be Home For Christmas’. Hank Ballard & The Midnighters also venture into the slow blues in ‘Christmas Time For Everybody But Me’. Jesse Belvin also does this successfully during ‘I Want You With Me Xmas’. ‘Hello Santa Claus’ is a sublime piano blues by Cecil Gant. Another legendary blues pianist was Charles Brown. ‘Please Come Home For Christmas’ is a gem without a doubt.
Ray Agee was once part of a gospel group. That influence, but also a good dose of really good soul, can be heard in ‘Merry Christmas My Love’. For jump blues of the best kind, you can always go to Big Joe Turner. Here you can hear him with his orchestra during ‘Christmas Date Boogie’. More in the direction of rhythm & blues, B.B. King conducts his ‘Christmas Celebration’. B.B. formed the 3 great Kings of the blues together with Albert King and Freddy King. Freddy is also present on this compilation with ‘I Hear Jingle Bells’. Other blues greats who are present are harmonica giant Sonny Boy Williamson and guitarist Lightnin’ Hopkins, with ‘Sonny Boy’s Christmas Blues’ and ‘Santa’ respectively. An authentic downhome blues comes with ‘Christmas Blues’ by Washboard Pete. Lonnie Hewitt played jazz, which still resonates in small doses in ‘You’ve Been A Bad Little Girl’. ‘May Every Day Be Christmas’ by Louis Jordan also sounds somewhat jazzy.
Closing is reserved for the great Big Maybelle. Together with the orchestra of Ernie Wilkins she brings a wonderful version of ‘White Christmas’.
If you want to further expand your collection of Christmas albums, then this ‘Get Ready For A Groovy And Bluesy Christmas’ is more than worth its money.

Since the mid-1990s, the Belgo-Brussels collective has been serving up a blistering mix of groove, horns and accordion. With the energy of a rock band (without guitars!) the improvisational fun of a jazz combo, the open-mindedness of musical adventurers and the charisma of buskers, they share their poetic and pertinent reflections on society.

Birdcatcher II will be released on September 20, 2024 on Suburban Records and contains ten new 'roots noir' songs. Recorded with guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Eric van Dijsseldonk, drummer/producer Gabriel Peeters and some guests, including soul singer Malford Milligan from Texas. The album was mastered by Kevin Reeves in Nashville. Truly an album full of varied songs that are strongly connected musically, thematically and atmospherically and in which tradition is honored in a fresh and personal way. Highly recommended! 

Enchanting songs with creative arrangements.  A jazz duo made for each other.  

His unique playing style, in which he combines folk with classical, jazz and various world styles, makes him an all-round guitarist. Florian has been touring in and outside Europe for many years and has also met several interesting musicians on his travels. His heart lies in Lisbon, where he met fado musician Miguel Conchinha. In Istanbul he met Ozan Demir. In his live performances he not only shares music, but also stories and anecdotes from his travels. At the beginning of October he proudly presents his first solo album 'Islas', all compositions of which were written on ten different islands. Between 2022 and today, Florian went out with his guitar and decided to write a piece of music on acoustic guitar on a different island each time. Each island got its own composition. Great…. 

Bear Family Records’ ‘On The Dancefloor With’ honors one of the most successful American female singers of her time with the latest release around Connie Francis. With a number of songs, such as ‘Stupid Cupid’, ‘Lipstick On Your Collar’, the co-written ‘Vacation’, ‘Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool’ and the LaVern Baker cover ‘Tweedle Dee’, Connie also became known in Europe. But apart from these nice and strong songs, she had more up her sleeve. Connie could namely bring various musical genres very convincingly. Her emotional empathy in her songs was without a doubt her strong point. Whether she had to sing a tearjerker or a raw rock-‘n-roll song, she always managed to send the song to a high level. The fact that she got the music from home will certainly have contributed to that. Her father played the concertina and sent Connie to music school for accordion lessons when she was barely three years old. Through talent shows on television she slowly but surely ended up in the music business, with the known result.
For ‘On The Dancefloor With Connie Francis’, compiler Nico Feuerbach chose, in addition to the previously mentioned songs, also the effervescent rockers and ‘dancefloor killers’ from Connie’s career. In total you get no less than 32 sublime tracks.
With opener ‘If My Pillow Could Talk’ you immediately hear Connie’s vocal qualities and empathy. That song is followed by the well-known ‘Stupid Cupid’ with none other than Neil Sedaka, who was also a co-author, on the piano. As a co-author Neil would also provide her with ‘Fallin’’ and ‘Baby Roo’.
Connie could also count on enormously talented songwriters and leading orchestras. For example, this compilation contains ‘The Tiger And The Mouse’ by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman. She comes across as a light jazzy rocker in ‘Ol’ Man Mose’ by co-writer Louis Armstrong and in ‘Send For My Baby’. Eddie Curtis also wrote a number of beautiful songs that suit Connie, such as ‘Gonna Git That Man’, ‘Johnny Darlin’’ and ‘Telephone Lover’. For a while Connie had a relationship with Bobby Darin, until her father did everything he could to drive the two apart. Bobby did co-write Francis’ smooth-sounding ‘Come On Jerry (Timber)’. Don Covay, who later became known as a soul artist, co-wrote the handsome rocking ‘Mr. Twister’ together with John Berry and Mark Lewis. John D. Loudermilk was responsible for ‘Hollywood’ and ‘He’s Just A Scientist’. The well-known composer Irving Berlin gave Connie the crooner song ‘The Song Is Ended (But The Melody Lingers On). That Connie could interpret various musical styles without any problems is evident from the Latin-like ‘Torero’ and ‘Malaguena’. But she also had talent as a songwriter. You can enjoy that during ‘Plenty Good Lovin’’. The album ends appropriately with ‘Goody Goodbye’. This compilation makes it clear once again that Connie Francis is a great singer, who recorded songs that are still impressive today.

And whether they are ready for the next musical revolution. Album opener ‘The Woman With A Face Of Iron’ and ‘June’ are genuinely beautiful songs. ‘God Damn’ has a bluesy vibe, just like ‘Sur Les Rives’ and ‘Rensiwez’ are instrumental chapters. The song ‘The Curtain’ is sown with incendiary guitar riffs and some piano arrangements. ‘Cake’ feat. Loverman is almost the only ballade on the release. From ‘Rose’ it goes finally to the emotional ‘Song For Dave’. 

Gary Nicholson has produced one of his most contrasting LPs. From genuine rockers it goes quickly to blues and samp, sad ballads and some country. Highly recommended.

How related can folk music be?  Valses and polkas from Finland played on an original harmonium with sweet violin.  Are we in Scandinavia or in France?