Charlie Brown’s TV Show Tunes: They’re Perky, Bright and Special

*** VINCE GUARALDI TRIO

“Charlie Brown’s Holiday Hits”

Fantasy

Here’s a terrific last-minute Christmas gift that can please fans of almost any kind of music. Vince Guaraldi was San Francisco’s favorite jazz pianist for years before his music became the instantly recognizable sound of the “Charlie Brown” television specials. Guaraldi would probably have been the last to claim that there was much musical density in the light, effervescent jazz themes he wrote and performed for the “Peanuts” shows (there have been 58 half-hour cartoons since “A Charlie Brown Christmas” first aired in 1964). But, for a generation of young people, it was a memorable introduction to the sound of jazz, presented in a highly accessible manner, and in retrospect it contains some irresistibly attractive improvising.

All of the music included here--performed by Guaraldi with a variety of small ensembles--was recorded for the television specials, and much of it has never before been commercially released. There are such familiar items as the “Charlie Brown Theme,” “Linus and Lucy” and both instrumental and vocal renderings of the now-classic “Christmas Time Is Here.” The vocals (also on “Oh, Good Grief”) are provided in authentically charming fashion by a chorus of sixth-graders.

And, amid the bright, perky rhythms, Guaraldi turns out some bright, hard-swinging solos, his brisk right-hand lines touched with an ineffable sense of swing. When he died of a heart attack in 1976 at the age of 47, Guaraldi had recorded the soundtracks to 15 “Peanuts” specials. To his credit, it is music that--as perfect and appropriate as it may have been for the cartoons--also manages the rare feat of standing on its own.

*** 1/2 JOE PASS

“Unforgettable”

Pablo Records

It looks as though Pablo’s cache of Pass albums still has a way to go before it runs out. And, for fans of definitive jazz guitar playing, that’s good news. This latest collection of solo tracks was recorded in 1992, less than two years before Pass’ death in May 1994.

The tunes are all familiar classics from the great American songbook--”My Romance,” “Autumn Leaves,” “Spring Is Here,” “April In Paris,” to name only a few. And they are played with stunning perfection, the kind of performances that only can be generated by a combination of brilliant improvisational imagination and a wise, mature musical perspective. Pass has recorded so many exquisite albums that it’s impossible to rate one higher than another. But his soloing here is done with the kind of extraordinary, introspective artistry that can stand alongside his finest outings.

** 1/2 CHICK COREA

“Chick Corea & Origin: A Week at the Blue Note”

Stretch Records

Corea’s new group, Origin, is one of his best ensembles. His compositions and arrangements make the most of a three-horn front line, mixing Ellingtonesque textures with cutting-edge solo work from his own piano, Steve Davis’ trombone and the saxophones and woodwinds of Bob Sheppard and Steve Wilson.

It will take a dedicated Corea fan, however, to wade through all six CDs in this boxed set, recorded shortly after the ensemble was first organized in late 1997. There’s no denying the quality of the playing, which is first-rate. But hearing three and four versions of the same tunes is enough to test the patience of even the most devoted listener.