A King Family Christmas, various artists (GarageLand)

I kind of scratched my head at someone who wrote to me asking about King Family Christmas music, since the old-line family chorale approach doesn't loom large at Mistletunes. Then I received this 2006 collection. So if my correspondent was referring to this collection, apologies. This compilation from Hoboken, N.J.-area bands, led by members of Better Off Dead, is intended to raise money for displaced and impoverished musicians in post-Katrina New Orleans, and these folks are a bluesy bunch of rockers. The recording quality is good, the performances are spontaneous (and a bit of a surprise to the live audiences on a hot August night). Though you can tell these are hometown players rather than international stars, this is quite listenable all at once. Highlights include Big Ed Sullivan's extended take on "Merry Christmas Baby," Christine Santelli's original "Christmastime," Dave Gross and Sean Daly's "Django Bells," which of course is "Jingle Bells" as Django Reinhart might have done it, Better Off Dead's take on "All I Got For Christmas Was Drunk" and their original "Alcoholiday" (sense a trend with this band?), Galea and Popa Chubby's "Blue Christmas" shuffle, Mike Frensley's original "Winter Dreams," and the Cramps-like "All I Want For Christmas Is You" by The Slippery Chickens. A solo slide guitar version of "Little Drummer Boy" by Joe Taino is pretty unexpected, too. The rest is good boozy fun. Remains available from CDBaby.