Cool Yule newcomers and chestnuts

Jazz artists are almost universally fond of Christmas music, with its appealing harmonies and rhythmic melodies, and holiday albums have begun to arrive with increased frequency, especially from the music’s more pop-oriented performers. A look at some of 2002’s stylistically mixed new arrivals:

Chris Botti

“December” (Columbia)

***

Trumpeter Botti’s burgeoning career as a solo artist calls up a distinct echo of Chet Baker. With his similarly (although blond rather than dark-haired) matinee-idol good looks, his warm and affecting trumpet sound, and his laid-back, intimate vocals, Botti would seem to have the credentials for a significant breakout. In this collection, he sings two songs -- “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and a lovely new number, “Perfect Day,” by Richard and Cynthia Marx -- and applies his silken trumpet tone and lyrical phrasing to classics ranging from “The Christmas Song” to “Silent Night.”

The Gypsy Hombres

“Django Bells” (Memphis Intl.)

***

Who are these guys? If you can believe it, they’re from Nashville, a free-floating trio led by violinist Peter Hyrka, here accompanied by guitarist Justin Thompson and bassist David Spicher. The implied connection, of course, is to Django Reinhardt, Stephane Grappelli and the Hot Club of France. And there are passages in which these players call up some distinctly swinging, Parisian resonances. More often, their jaunty rhythms more closely resemble Bob Wills & the Texas Playboys, enhanced by a sense of humor that delivers “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” as a tango, starts “Here Comes Santa Claus” with the phrasing of a Bach violin sonata and kicks off “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” with the famous thematic motif from “Dragnet.”

Warren Hill

“A Warren Hill Christmas” (Narada Jazz)

** 1/2

Smooth-jazz alto saxophonist Hill starts out his holiday set in surprisingly spare fashion, playing “Frosty the Snowman,” “Santa Baby” and “White Christmas” in classic, straight-ahead settings. Unfortunately, the balance of the program soon shifts into the predictable, drum machine-like rhythms and synthesizer textures so common to smooth jazz.

Steve Tyrell

“This Time of the Year” (Columbia)

**

Listening to Tyrell’s assemblage of Christmas songs is a bit like opening a gift box and finding that it contains a not particularly convincing knockoff of an Armani necktie. Tyrell is surrounded by a sterling group of players, and the arrangements by co-producer and guitarist Bob Mann, establish the sort of briskly swinging groove associated with Frank Sinatra-Nelson Riddle recordings. But Tyrell is no Sinatra. Or even Dean Martin, for that matter. Despite the enthusiasm constantly present in his singing, the album ultimately suffers from his narrow interpretive range.

Ella Fitzgerald

“Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas” (Verve)

*** 1/2

Recorded in 1960, when Fitzgerald was 43 and very much at the height of her powers, this reissue is a definitive example of an artist who could cross over to the pop market without sacrificing an iota of her jazz skills. Arrangements by Frank DeVol frame her readings in the upbeat, rhythmically mellow style characteristic of the late ‘50s and early ‘60s, and Fitzgerald is as crisp and swinging on “Jingle Bells” as she is warm and supple on “The Christmas Song.”

Various artists

“Santa’s Greatest Hits”

(Varese Sarabande)

***

This one’s for fun. The tracks come from every imaginable source, including World War II V-discs and period radio broadcasts. And the selections are amazingly diverse: Eartha Kitt’s wittily sensual “Santa Baby,” Count Basie’s “I Want to See Santa Claus (Good Morning Blues)” (with a Jimmy Rushing vocal ), Stan Kenton’s “Ride On Santa, Ride On” (sung by June Christy), Louis Armstrong’s “Zat You Santa Claus?,” Louis Prima’s “What Will Santa Claus Say” and Louis Jordan’s “Santa Claus, Santa Claus.”