Overview:
In such a chaotic, nasty times, shows such as these are a salve to a wounded culture.
Every holiday season, a litany of shows invade Northeast Ohio — well, everywhere for that matter — in the hopes of bringing copious amounts of holiday cheer. No fewer than two dozen holiday concerts have been taking place since the week before Thanksgiving; some of these concerts are as perennial as a poinsettia, and just as colorful.
Dave Koz, whose yearly Christmas concert has lit up the North Coast for 28 years now, came back to Playhouse Square last night for a brisk ninety minutes of smooth jazz, holiday favorites, and light, effortless banter between him and the musicians of his troupe.
The saxophone great brought a roster of heavyweights with him for this edition: Jonathan Butler, the South African-born guitarist; pianist Kayla Waters (daughter of sax man Kim Waters), and American Idol alumni Casey Abrams and Haley Reinhart.
Reinhart is perhaps the best-known of the lot; her third place finish in the tenth season of Idol propelled her into the spotlight. She’s since toured as part of Post Modern Jukebox, released several albums, and may be best-known for her cover of Radiohead’s “Creep,” which stayed atop the Billboard Jazz Charts for well over a year. Her red sparkling gown and matching gloves and hair threw off a Jessica Rabbit vibe that lit up the stage.
Abrams, also an alumna of the tenth season of Idol and Post Modern Jukebox, played standup bass and took vocal duties on a few of the tunes.
Jonathan Butler, a renowned guitarist, co-headlined with Koz, providing vocals on a few tunes, most notably a Zulu-rendition of “Little Drummer Boy.”
The evening started at 7:00 sharp with a mashup of Bobby McFerrin’s “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” and “White Christmas.” An odd pairing, for sure, but the smooth jazz undertones made it all work. Segueing into a handful of traditional Christmas songs, the outfit offered “Let It Snow,” “Silver Bells,” and “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” in quick succession. Reinhart offered “Over the Rainbow,” the Yip Harburg composition made famous in The Wizard Of Oz, and as a late-set offering her torchy rendition of Elvis’ “Can’t Help Falling In Love.”
One of the highlights of the evening was an updated version of the recently-controversial “Baby, It’s Cold Outside,” sung in a duet by Koz and Reinhart. Some of the more-dated lyrics were replaced with more modern phrases, while Koz noted that Reinhart was engaged and he was gay, so there was no offense intended by the tune’s inclusion.
In such a chaotic, nasty times, shows such as these are a salve to a wounded culture. Koz has taken old-fashioned songs, reworked some of them to fit his smooth jazz stylings, and added a variety show feel to the proceedings. Corny? Maybe.
But only a Grinch could humbug such a festive occasion.
