Jazz for the Holidays – The Scott Oakley Trio with Joe La Barbera and Darek “Oles” Oleszkiewicz

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Features new arrangements of your favorite holiday standards…

Tracks:

  1. God Rest Ye Merry Gentle Man 5:13
  2. Silent night 4:44
  3. Santa Claus is Coming to Town 3:36
  4. It Came Upon A Midnight Clear 4:54
  5. White Christmas 4:18
  6. Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow 3:27
  7. Winter Wonderland 4:36
  8. The Christmas Song 4:11
  9. O Tannenbaum 5:03
  10. Little Drummer Boy 4:04
  11. Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer 2:39
  12. Greensleeves 3:46
  13. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas 3:17
  14. Here Comes Santa Claus 3:19

Personnel:

  • Scott Oakley piano
  • Darek “Oles” Oleszkiewicz, bass
  • Joe La Barbera, drums

All Songs Used With Permission
Copyright 2002 All rights reserved

I hope you enjoy my new CD, jazz for the holidays. I recorded it October 14, 2002 and used the best bassist and drummer Los Angeles has to offer.

Joe La Barbera was the last drummer with the great Bill Evans prior to his death, and many would say that Bill Evan’s last trio was his best. I saw that group almost 25 years ago and they were awe-inspiring. Bassist Darek “Oles” Oleszkiewicz has just recorded on Brad Mehldau’s recent CD Largo and if you haven’t heard Brad’s playing you owe it to yourself to pick up some of his music. He is the heir to Keith Jarrett, and in some ways a logical extension of Bill Evans.

I began the preparation for this date by picking a bunch of Christmas “standards” and creating arrangements that added harmonic and rhythmic interest to these familiar melodies. I rented a grand piano and knew I was on the right track when my neighbors complained about my “relentless” practicing.

Dig the reggae groove of Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow, the slinky mahogany rendition of O Tannenbaum, and the gospel of Silent Night. I hope you’ll find that jazz for the holidays provides a quiet and intriguing background for you and your family this season.

–Scott Oakley

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