1. Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairies
2. Christmas Time Is Here
3. Little Drummer Boy
4. My Favorite Things
5. What Child Is This?
6. O Holy Night
7. Bad Boy Christmas
8. Winter Wonderland
9. Away In A Manger
10. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
11. The Christmas Song
12. We Three Kings
ARTIST SITE
CD BABY
Mike Conley is clearly a musician who is not only comfortable, but also proficient in, just about any setting or genre. In and around his Indiana home, he plays as a solo act, as part of a duo, and with a Jazz group called The Beef Manhattans. He's played acoustic, Jazz, Rock, Country, Folk and most of the variations thereof. On "It's A Conley Christmas", Mike brings all that experience to bear. The result is a fine album anyone would be happy to throw on the CD player at Christmas time.
The album opens with a brief instrumental take on "Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairies". It's really a dynamite take on a song that's never been one of my favorites. I think I might have followed that with one of the more uptempo tracks, but it's hard to argue with such a beautifully rendered version of "Christmas Time Is Here". And I'm a sucker for cello, anyway, so Jane Herald's presence on the first two tracks put me in a Christmas state of mind.
From there, the album flows like a string of multi-colored Christmas lights as Conley moves effortlessly from one genre to the next, while still giving these well known classics their due respect. Mike rocks "Little Drummer Boy", with the able assistance of drummer Aaron Bushong. The Beef Manhattans swing their way through one of my favorites from the disc--"My Favorite Things". The temperature drops for a moment of acoustic beauty on "What Child Is This" (both cello and flute on that one). Mike takes a Country/Rock run at "O Holy Night" then hits you with the funk of the album's lone original, "Bad Boy Christmas".
I part ways with Mike on "Winter Wonderland", one of the few songs where he's reworked the melody. The rock sound was fine, but the new melody didn't work for me at all. Conley fares much better, though, on his reworking of "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas", a tasty nugget of Classic Rock and one of many places on the album where the saxophone of Chris Richardson shines. "The Christmas Song" is done in solid fashion by The Beef Manhattans before the album closes with another highlight--a rocking "We 3 Kings".
"It's A Conley Christmas", as it turns out, is only Mike Conley's second album. So I'm guessing the best is yet to come. But Conley's Christmas album is well conceived, played and produced. By sticking primarily with the classics, this disc feels immediately Christmas cozy. Through his interpretations, Mike offers just the right amount of holiday spice to the recipe to keep it fresh and original. "It's A Conley Christmas" is a solid effort ready to take its place in your annual holiday rotation.
2. Christmas Time Is Here
3. Little Drummer Boy
4. My Favorite Things
5. What Child Is This?
6. O Holy Night
7. Bad Boy Christmas
8. Winter Wonderland
9. Away In A Manger
10. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
11. The Christmas Song
12. We Three Kings
ARTIST SITE
CD BABY
Mike Conley is clearly a musician who is not only comfortable, but also proficient in, just about any setting or genre. In and around his Indiana home, he plays as a solo act, as part of a duo, and with a Jazz group called The Beef Manhattans. He's played acoustic, Jazz, Rock, Country, Folk and most of the variations thereof. On "It's A Conley Christmas", Mike brings all that experience to bear. The result is a fine album anyone would be happy to throw on the CD player at Christmas time.
The album opens with a brief instrumental take on "Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairies". It's really a dynamite take on a song that's never been one of my favorites. I think I might have followed that with one of the more uptempo tracks, but it's hard to argue with such a beautifully rendered version of "Christmas Time Is Here". And I'm a sucker for cello, anyway, so Jane Herald's presence on the first two tracks put me in a Christmas state of mind.
From there, the album flows like a string of multi-colored Christmas lights as Conley moves effortlessly from one genre to the next, while still giving these well known classics their due respect. Mike rocks "Little Drummer Boy", with the able assistance of drummer Aaron Bushong. The Beef Manhattans swing their way through one of my favorites from the disc--"My Favorite Things". The temperature drops for a moment of acoustic beauty on "What Child Is This" (both cello and flute on that one). Mike takes a Country/Rock run at "O Holy Night" then hits you with the funk of the album's lone original, "Bad Boy Christmas".
I part ways with Mike on "Winter Wonderland", one of the few songs where he's reworked the melody. The rock sound was fine, but the new melody didn't work for me at all. Conley fares much better, though, on his reworking of "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas", a tasty nugget of Classic Rock and one of many places on the album where the saxophone of Chris Richardson shines. "The Christmas Song" is done in solid fashion by The Beef Manhattans before the album closes with another highlight--a rocking "We 3 Kings".
"It's A Conley Christmas", as it turns out, is only Mike Conley's second album. So I'm guessing the best is yet to come. But Conley's Christmas album is well conceived, played and produced. By sticking primarily with the classics, this disc feels immediately Christmas cozy. Through his interpretations, Mike offers just the right amount of holiday spice to the recipe to keep it fresh and original. "It's A Conley Christmas" is a solid effort ready to take its place in your annual holiday rotation.
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