Christmas + Jazz = Three (Well, Four) Early Holiday Records

We are hard into the season of Christmas music. And we all have our favorites. Some of us (like yours truly) prefer the traditional carols while others like their holiday music more modern and secular. That latter category has been where all the action has been for the past several decades. Whether we are talking about Mariah Carey (“All I Want For Christmas Is You”) or Eartha Kitt (“Santa Baby”), the pop holiday song has been a staple. But did you ever wonder about the beginnings of that tradition? Well then, today is your lucky day because we were due for some vintage jazz anyway, so we can kill two turtledoves with one stone!

This is not going to be strictly historical, because it is a certainty that there were some holiday records put out here or there before things started consolidating in the music industry in the mid 1930’s. And because even after that, many of those early records are more interesting than they are good. For example, we have yet to feature anything by Guy Lombardo. Because our focus here is on the jazz (and the jazz-adjacent) parts of the musical spectrum, we can skip over the earliest novelties which were in the category of un-jazz. A category which I just made up, but which serves the present need fairly well.

What we do have today is three four examples of jazz groups from the 1930’s who released holiday records that still hold up pretty well. Our samples are chronological, covering 1934, 1935 and 1936. It is probably coincidence that these records also bring an increasing amount of heat and verve in that same chronological order.

One new song that became a hit in 1934 was Winter Wonderland. Written by Felix Bernard (music) and Richard Bernhard Smith (lyrics), the song was inspired by a snowy park. More of a “winter song” than a Christmas or holiday song, it has earned its place in holiday playlists over a long time. A couple of other bands were either first (Richard Himber) or most popular (Guy Lombardo), but the best one for those of us who love the bands from the early swing era is by Ted Weems.

Weems had a solid band in the late 1920’s and early 1930’s, and was one of those who was gently tiptoeing into the swing rhythm as Benny Goodman was making his first big splash. The first part of the record is pretty vanilla and nothing about Parker Gibbs’ vocal that is much out of the ordinary for the time. Meaning that it’s not great for modern ears. For me, it is at right before the 2 minute mark when the record earns its spot here with a cheerful early swing.

“Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town” was another big holiday hit of 1934 after being introduced on the radio by Eddie Cantor. Tommy Dorsey was ready to cash in for the following holiday season and recorded this version in late 1935. If there was any doubt about the direction of jazz as popular music in 1934, those doubts were gone by the next year.

This is a record that needs no apologies or asterisks. Tommy Dorsey is best remembered today as the bandleader who made Frank Sinatra a star in the 1940’s. But he and his trombone had been on some really good jazz records for quite a few years when his new band started recording for RCA Victor in 1935. This version of the song drives hard from the start, letting off the gas just a little to make room for the singers.  You will notice that the second verse (sung by Edyth Wright) is definitely not geared to the kiddies. 

Musically, this record shows why Dorsey’s name has always been in the top tier when people discuss the jazz-oriented big bands of the 1930’s and 1940’s.  Whether it’s his trombone playing, the other really good musicians or their ability to handle hot arrangements, Dorsey proved ready for the big time in 1935.

Tangent Alert! I had planned on writing about only three records today, but simply cannot rationalize ignoring this one. Benny Goodman’s 1935 instrumental of Jingle Bells cannot be ignored for two reasons. First, Victor released it as the B-side of Dorsey’s “Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town”. How Goodman (who was the far bigger name in 1935) was made the B-side is a good question – possibly because it was not a vocal? The second reason it rates a mention is that it was popular in its own right, with one source saying it got as high as No. 18 on the pop charts of the day.

This record is vintage early Goodman, except for the first chorus that he plays oddly “straight”. Benny was becoming known as “The King Of Swing” for good reason, and his band of the mid 1930’s was one of the best. This flip-side of this record may not drive as hard as the Dorsey recording, but Goodman had a way of making his music feel relaxed while swinging hard, all at the same time.

Here is the version of Jingle Bells I had intended to feature – one recorded by the inimitable Fats Waller in 1936. We have covered Waller before, and his was one of the most free-flowing groups around in the 1930’s. Always the clown, Fats just can’t help himself playing around with the lyrics, just as he can’t help the way that big left hand pounds out a rhythm.

Jingle Bells is a real oldie, written around 1850 and published in 1859. I am not sure it is possible to count the number of times it has been recorded, with the earliest versions done well before 1900 (like this 1989 performance by the Edison Male Quartet). But this freewheeling recording by Fats Waller may be the most fun of any I have ever heard. (And if you don’t like the Big Man’s vocals, he did an alternate take the same day where he let the music do all the talking).

So take my holiday advice – come back this evening, pour yourself an egg nog, plug into some decent speakers and soak up some early holiday jazz. There will be plenty of time for Mariah Carey later.

17 thoughts on “Christmas + Jazz = Three (Well, Four) Early Holiday Records”

  1. A nice selection, but it makes one wonder: in our current era, some radio stations convert to all Christmas music a few weeks prior to the day, and there are many options to pick from (you can actually put together all jazz or all blues selections that could go on for hours if not days), but was this so ubiquitous eighty years ago? Was there enough holiday music available in the 40’s for radio stations to play it constantly a week or two before the holiday? In my lifetime, I’m always amazed at how many bands, many that I would think wound not bother to do it, come out with Christmas selections, no matter how “questionable”. In the 1940’s, was there actually the volume of Christmas platters available?

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    • As near as I can tell, the first actual “Christmas album” as we have come to know it came from Bing Crosby in 1940. I don’t think it was until after the war that it became common for jazz/pop artists to release more than an occasional holiday-themed disc.
      I think bands often did holiday songs in live performances/broadcasts, but I suspect most were not recorded other than as captured on radio.

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  2. One of the pleasant little things about the Christmas season in the fact that the grocery stores, etc. start playing Christmas music on the background music system in place of the regular stuff. Occasionally, classic holiday recordings from the ’60s, ’50s, (and I think even the ’40s!) would sneak in. As I’m sure you know, any music from that era (in terms of voices, orchestration, etc.) brings a whole different vibe to the overall atmosphere–which of course I love experiencing.

    This year I haven’t heard much if any older stuff being played. There are a lot of newer renditions of holiday tunes, which to me range from “somewhat acceptable and creative” to “Ughhhhh!” I won’t go into further details.

    As it is, during the course of the year, there seems to be a “law” that says that a supermarket can’t play any song older than, say, 1965. Maybe a little earlier or later; I’m not sure. It seems a shame that we can’t experience a broader range of eras, which I think would be refreshing. You can go on YouTube and hear hours of music that K-Mart used to play during the holidays–I actually think it’s quite good.

    Did I ever tell you about the time I walked into a Burger King and they were playing Bach harpsichord concertos? Didn’t last long. Story for another day . . .

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    • I agree that when it comes to Christmas music, older is usually better. And I am amazed at how every recording artist that makes it to two album releases puts out a Christmas album. Most of those are quite forgettable.

      Bach in a BK sounds fun!

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  3. I’ve told you the story before but for a few months of my career I had to get to work very early each day. During that very cold winter the CBC ran an early jazz program at 5am. Impossibly perky Christmas jazz makes me want to stay under the covers, roll over and go back to sleep. Fats Waller seems to be having quite a bit of fun there, anybody else would have been told to knock it off.

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  4. I remember Guy Lombardo – I’m pretty sure my parents had an album of his and we always stayed up to watch him bring the new year in – the one night I could stay up late and we only had one television in those days. I like the more traditional Christmas carols and abhor the “Santa Baby” version by Madonna (I don’t care for her or her music to begin with). The Eartha Kitt version is so much better. I don’t like any of the modern Christmas songs and I do not understand the appeal of Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” – just too loud in my opinion. I just heard a list on CBS radio news about the most-hated Christmas songs and the winner was “The Chipmunk Song – Please Christmas Don’t Be Late”. I like that whimsical song a lot more than any of the modern Christmas songs.

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    • I actually thought about writing something about The Chipmunk Song. I’m with you, that it’s a fun addition to the season. But maybe it’s my age because I loved The Chipmunks as a kid.

      My grandma loved Guy Lombardo, too. He ran a very successful dance band for decades, but jazz was definitely not his thing.

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      • Back then kids had their Christmas music and adults had there own music. Now, who knows? The Chipmunks Christmas song was clever – I hope they didn’t make a whole album of them singing though. I didn’t really remember him except for that one night a year on TV for New Year’s Eve and I’m guessing Dick Clark replaced him? I haven’t watched that TV special in years – I’ve not watched TV in 15 years.

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      • A whole Chipmunks album you say? Wikipedia says they released 38 of them!!!. One was a childhood purchase of mine: “The Chipmunks Sing The Beatles Hits” (1964)!!

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      • You’re kidding! I had no idea there were that many of them. You should do a post about them and who voiced the Chipmunks and of course “Dave”. I’m going to YouTube to find a few Beatles Tunes by these guys. 🙂

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      • Just listened to “All My Loving” … I’m sure my parents put their foot/feet down and said “Please Christmas Don’t Be Late” with their squeaky voices was enough. I didn’t have my own record player until I got older. 🙂

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      • I was waiting for you to reply J.P. I was born in ‘54, and you can bet I saw and even owned multiple Chipmunks albums! You know, they were sort of a one trick pony. Most of the albums were good for one or two listenings, that was about it…

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  5. IMPORTANT NEWS FLASH: I was in the ACME supermarket today and they were playing “Boogie Woogie Santa Claus” by Patti Page (1950). So that’s more proof that occasionally some older numbers do creep in.

    It would be great if they played one of the four selections you profiled above.

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