I Just Read About That…

SOUNDTRACK: MATT WILSON’S CHRISTMAS TREE-O-Tiny Desk Concert #99 (December 20, 2010).

Matt Wilson is a jazz drummer.  And he joined forces with Paul Sikivie on bass and reedman Jeff Lederer on saxophone, clarinet and piccolo.

Wilson is a great drummer and he normally plays standard (if wild) jazz.  But for this group (the name is an indicator of the silliness), they play a spirited and fun set of Christmas songs–some of them crazy and unrecognizable and others simply fun and jazzy.  And despite the fact that Wilson does some amazing things with just a snare and a cymbal, it’s hard not to say that the show belongs to Lederer.

“Hark the Herald Angels Sing” starts out pretty straightforward.  The initial melody is present and then Lederer goes off on a lengthy solo in the middle.  “O Come All You Faithful” is a sing-along in which Lederer plays a very slow staccato line on clarinet for the audience to sing along with.  It’s Sikivie’s steady bass that keeps the crowd in line.  Meanwhile Wilson is playing his brushes on everything–his snare, a desk, anything that comes along.  It’s good fun with everybody really getting into it by the end.  “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” starts out slow with Lederer’s sax laying down a smooth melody line and then drifting into his own space.  It’s quite pretty if unusual.

“Angels We Have Heard on High” is audio only and it begins with a rattling of jingle bells and Lederer’s skronking sax (I’d actually like to see that part–it seems like the most interesting visual songs are the ones left off the video).  Then he starts playing a sax melody (although nothing like “Angels” normally sounds).  There is some notation of “Angels” by the end, but it’s very minimal.  The most unlikely Christmas song ever (well, until what comes next).

The final song is a version of Handel’s “Hallelujah Chorus” and it is completely unrecognizable.  It opens with skronking sax noise and martial drums.  Aside from a few seconds where the bass plays a part of the familiar melody, the rest is mostly noise.  As the song draws to a close Matt starts playing the four note “ha – leh – lu – jah” on the snare, he then starts hitting that rhythm on everything–the rim, the bookcase, he even grabs a mug off the shelf and plays it on that.  It’s pretty funny and clear that Wilson is having a grand old time.

This nonsense ends when Lederer picks up the piccolo and plays a fun if silly version of “We Wish You A Merry Christmas,” which is very slow despite Matt’s super fast drumming.

It’s a funny, silly good time and an unexpected way to sing Christmas carols.

[READ: December 18, 2015] The Battle of Life

This book is the third of four in the collected Christmas Books.  This book is very tangentially related to Christmas (although he did publish it as a Christmas book) as one section takes place at Christmas time.

The thing that I really caught on to while reading this is that Dickens’ stories were really written for a very different time.  His books unfold slowly.  I find that I like to read fast (as many others do, I suspect), and I think the reason people dislike Dickens is because he really forces you to slow down.  But if you do slow down, you can really appreciate his descriptions and his humor.

This story begins on a battlefield.  And Dickens tells us all about the battle that took place here and all the people who died here.  For several paragraphs he goes on about it.  And then you learn that the battle has nothing to do with the story–except as an underpinning to the attitudes of people who live there.

Rather, the story is set on the battlefield many many many years later (and has nothing to do with the battle).  For this is a love story, after all.

The characters enter the story dancing.  A passing minstrel is playing music–and we see Grace and Marion Jeddler, (two sisters) dancing in the fields.  Their father, Dr. Jeddler is a fascinating character who believes that everything is a laugh–there’s nothing worth taking seriously–and he is delighted to see his daughters dancing.

This story is about them, but it is also about the two household servants–Clemency Newcombe and Benjamin Britain (known as Little Britain).

The plot is fairly simple.  Alfred Heathfield, a young medical student has been in love with Marion since they were children.  They are set to marry in a year’s time.  And then, on the day their engagement is to be announced, Marion leaves.

Meanwhile, Mr Craggs and Mr Snitchet, two lawyers, friends with Dr Jeddler meet with a young man named Michael Warden who tells them that he intends to take Marion away from Alfred, as she clearly does not love him.

Part 3 of three begins six years later.  And it settles in on Clemency and Little Britain.  They explain what has happened to the family since Marion’s departure.  And then they are visited by a man who looks strangely familiar.

Once I accepted the pacing of the story I found it really quite engaging.  Although I have to admit that I kept getting Marion and Grace confused (which is pretty important to the story).  Nevertheless, I found it surprisingly enjoyable (if a bit of a drastic way to get your point across).