This brother and sister blues act offer an EP of Christmas-oriented music for 2016. They kick off solidly with a rocking version of "Christmas Man Blues," the Bertha "Chippie" Hill song, but it's a bit of an outlier; the rest of the EP has a more traditional and reflective tone. The title song, which may be an original, is a nice holiday ballad with orchestral backing and nothing much blues-oriented about it. "Mary Mary" is the traditional song in the Sarah McLachlan arrangement but with a bluesy wailing guitar figure going through it. "What Child Is This" is a straight reading with solo guitar backing, "Christmas Time Is Here" lacks the piano figures but is otherwise faithful to the original "Peanuts" version, and "The Christmas Song (Chestnuts)" is likewise a reverent performance with just a hint of the blues they're best known for offering. Nice work in a pop realm for the most part, but I'll probably be playlisting "Christmas Man Blues."
Leave a comment