December of 2008 turned out to be a rather momentous month for me, musically. That was when I listened to Celtic Thunder for the first time, and within a couple weeks of that, I heard Straight No Chaser’s The 12 Days of Christmas
on the radio at work, leading me to look the group up as soon as I got
home. I love Christmas music, but I’ll confess to generally finding that
song a bit tedious and strange. Who wants all that stuff? Especially
when half that “stuff” is people?
I’ve pretty much had it with
straightforward versions of that song, but the controlled harmonic
chaos of this a cappella group’s version is inspired, with something to
make me laugh in every verse even as my ears bask in the tight blending
of voices. Many others agreed with me; after the video, taken from a
1998 performance of the Indiana University a cappella group, got
millions of hits, Atlantic Records came calling. Holiday Spirits -
featuring Dan Ponce, Randy Stine, Charlie Mechling, Steve Morgan,
Jerome Collins, Dave Roberts, Walter Chase, Mike Itkoff, Mike Luginbill
and Ryan Ahlwardt - is the result.
The 12 Days of Christmas
isn’t first, but I have to mention it first since it’s the one that
launched the group into national awareness. Founder Dan Ponce’s
brilliant arrangement allows the members to breeze through several
verses at the same time, though how they can keep straight who’s singing
what is a mystery. In addition to singing multiple verses at the same
time, they creatively incorporate several traditional songs, including Deck the Halls, Frosty the Snowman, Here We Come A-Wassailing and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.
It’s amusing to hear the rather grotesque Boar’s Head Carol, to which VeggieTales’ zany first Christmas album introduced me, tossed in, and Hanukkah gets an endearing nod with an individual outburst of The Dreidel Song. But it’s the inclusion of Toto’s Africa
that really gets me. It feels so utterly random, and yet they get the
song to fit the format so perfectly. Well, okay, I’ll admit that
“drummers drumming like Olympus upon the Serengeti” doesn’t actually
make much sense. But the whole thing is so off-kilter that the line just
makes me smile. This instantly became one of my favorite Christmas
recordings - and my hands-down favorite version of the song, beating out
Garrison Keillor’s
deranged sound effects fest - so I was excited to learn that there was
more where that came from. While this track remains my favorite, the
rest of the album provides just as much listening pleasure.
Santa Claus Is Coming to Town
starts off curiously sedate before turning into a peppy, doo-woppy
number complete with finger-snapping and a distinctive backdrop of deep
voices. Sound effects of various toys are a nice touch, and Collins, my
favorite member of the group, has the lead. Jingle Bell Rock is on the mellow side, with lots of choral back-up, as is The Christmas Song, which also incorporates some jaunty whistling. Collins takes the spotlight again on This Christmas, a song I first heard from American Idol’s Ruben Studdard, though that version was a bit abrasive thanks to some intrusive instrumentation, whereas this one is smooth.
Christmas Wish
has a sweetly earnest tone to it. One of two originals on the album, it
is the plea of a lonely man longing for a love to share his Christmas
with. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing is pretty basic, but then Collins comes in with Angels We Have Heard On High,
with all the other members providing tiny bursts of backup like
cheerily blinking Christmas lights, and his soulful reading of “Come to
Bethlehem and see” is among my favorite moments on the album.
Considering the Beach Boys’ mastery of close harmony, Little Saint Nick
was a natural choice for Straight No Chaser, and they have a lot of fun
with it. This is one of only two songs to incorporate an external
instrument: jingle bells. And you’ll want some of your own to shake
along with the music.
Indiana Christmas is a touching
original song in tribute to Indiana, which is in the tradition of many
songs about going home for Christmas. I don’t know how many of the
group’s members are actually from Indiana, but it was certainly home to
all of them at one point. Accentuating the wistful tone of the song is
the verse that includes a reflection on deceased loved ones. One of my
favorite tracks. Sweet Little Jesus Boy is a lullaby I first heard on Anne Murray’s Christmas album, and their rendition is somber but tender. Collins takes the lead again on the peppy, pleading Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home), and the jingle bells make a welcome return as well.
Carol of the Bells is one of the coolest, incorporating God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen in the beginning and including lots of neat harmonies and voices imitating the sound of bells. From there, we move on to Silent Night,
which starts off pretty straightforward before experimenting
considerably with melody and harmony on the second verse and returning
to a more traditional reading for the third verse. This is one of those
songs you can almost guarantee you’ll find on most Christmas albums, and
their version has much to recommend it. The album ends on a chipper
note even though I generally think of Auld Lang Syne as a rather
melancholy song. It sure doesn’t sound like it when they do it, and why
should it? These old acquaintances certainly haven’t forgotten one
another, nor are you likely to forget them after hearing this luminous
reunion recording.
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