The Pinkerton Raid – Jagged Vacance Winter Songs by Other People
This 10-track celebratory LP isn’t necessarily a Christmas album per se but can be appreciated as such. It features classic Christmas songs mixed with non-Christmas tunes that have been dipped into the holiday spirit. The non-Christmas songs were “adopted” by that holiday program as “part of the family” of traditional Christmas music.
The musicians have patiently shaped Jagged Vacance Winter Songs by Other People (Drops Nov 29/Independent/39:25) into a consistent holiday-infused showcase performed admirably & produced by James Phillips.
The arrangements are tightly concise and retain their praise-worthy aspects. The opener is a Bon Iver tune “Holocene” that isn’t too holiday-driven in the way “White Christmas,” or “Silent Night” would be. However, there’s glorious spirit to it. Sometimes that’s all a good melody needs to embrace a special time of year. Jethro Tull did it with their delightful “Another Christmas Song.”
The Beatles classic “Norwegian Wood” isn’t a holiday song, but it was written with that feeling. It doesn’t improve on John Lennon’s original but the sincerity in Jesse James De Conto’s version with the added horns is intuitively beautiful.
Perhaps De Conto’s voice is too harsh for lullaby-type songs like “River,” so the Joni Mitchell song doesn’t possess the Christmas-oriented feel Joni’s original navigated. The song isn’t poorly done by a long shot, but it doesn’t have the holiday musical trimmings to be fully convincing. “Blue Christmas” the Elvis classic & “Hazy Shade of Winter” were miscalculations.
Christmas songs aren’t an easy feat. Many are recorded in the summer & in order to get the proper voicing; you need to at least feel festive. The John Lennon-Yoko Ono masterpiece “Happy Xmas (War is Over)” is another near-miss but the effort is good. Tackling songs sung by distinctive voices like Elvis, Lennon, or Joni Mitchell is gutsy. Jesse puts lots of enthusiasm into his work & he does make it sound festive.
Surprisingly, Jesse’s cover of the stunning Pogues’ “Fairytale of New York” composed by Shane McGowan & Jeremy Finer was never a real Christmas song either. But it has grit, desperation & vitality. The horns are good & Jesse is convincing. Toward the conclusion, his cover concludes with power. Also, a good exceptional selection is “White Winter Hymnal.”
There’s plenty to enjoy & the Pinkerton Raid consolidates holiday music with festive songs that became festive by default. Nothing comes off as schlocky, or silly. Many are thoroughly alive & refreshing.
Highlights – “Holocene,” “Norwegian Wood,” “Happy Xmas (War is Over),” “Fairytale of New York,” “A Long December” & “White Winter Hymnal.”
Musicians – Jesse James De Conto (vocals/acoustic & electric guitars/bass/banjo/harmonica), Cameron Collier (trumpet), Noah Elliot (keyboards), Andy Reed & Chris Arnet (drums), James Phillips (keyboards/percussion), Derek Skeen, Sarah Shearin, Megan Hollenbeck, Alex Mitchell, Suzanne & Caroline De Conto (bgv).
B&W image courtesy of Megan Hollenbeck. CD @ Bandcamp & https://www.pinkertonraid.com/
