SPOTLIGHT CD REVIEW: A JAZZY LITTLE CHRISTMAS LIVE AT BIRDLAND- ERNIE HAASE & SIGNATURE SOUND

SOUTHERN GOSPEL SPOTLIGHT PRESENTS:

CD REVIEW:

A JAZZY LITTLE CHRISTMAS (LIVE AT BIRDLAND)

ERNIE HAASE & SIGNATURE SOUND

LABEL: CLUB44 RECORDS

PRODUCER: WAYNE HAUN

RELEASE DATE: NOVEMBER 7, 2025

GROUP MEMBERS: ERNIE HAASE (TENOR), DOUG ANDERSON (BARITONE), DUSTIN DOYLE (LEAD), CHRISTOPHER TAYLOR (BASS), TYLER VESTAL (PIANIST)

SONG LIST:

1. Welcome & Introduction
2. Happy Holiday Season
3. A Marshmallow World
4. Intro to the Singers
5. Winter Wonderland
6. Christmas In Manhattan
7. I Like A Sleigh Ride (Jingle Bells)
8. Intro to Mister Santa
9. Mister Santa
10. O Holy Night
11. Intro to Band Members
12. Carol Of The Bells
13. Intro to We Three Kings
14. We Three Kings
15. It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas
16. Feliz Navidad
17. If It Doesn’t Snow On Christmas
18. Intro to Sometimes I Wonder
19. Sometimes I Wonder
20. Intro to Peace On Earth (with Silent Night)
21. Peace on Earth (with Silent Night)
22. Happy Holiday Season (Encore)

BREAKDOWN:

Ernie Haase & Signature Sound has delivered a special gift to listeners this Christmas with another new live album. This time, this stellar quartet brings us A Jazzy Little Christmas Live at Birdland, a special concert recorded live at Manhattan’s famous Birdland Jazz Club. Featuring selections from their fan favorite A Jazzy Little Christmas album as well as two songs from 2009’s Every Light That Shines At Christmas, this exciting album is sure to put listeners into the holiday spirit. Accompanied by a band composed of Roger Fortner on guitar, Eli Fortner on drums, Wes Jones on bass guitar, and Tyler Vestal on piano, Ernie Haase, Doug Anderson, Dustin Doyle, and Christopher Taylor deliver the reason for the season as only they can.

Since the original recording, released in 2019, Doug Anderson has returned to the quartet and Christopher Taylor now fills the bass position. Taylor brings such a rich, warm tone to these incredible arrangements of classic standards. This incredible project includes the hauntingly beautiful “We Three Kings,” the fun, uptempo “Marshmallow World,” the powerful “O Holy Night,” and the emotional “Sometimes I Wonder.” Dustin Doyle’s performance of the latter is simply brilliant every time. “Mister Santa” is also a standout for its fun reimagining of the classic “Mister Sandman,” that Ernie Haase mentions he watched on the Lawrence Welk show growing up. This record also includes a guest performance from Uriel Vega on saxophone on the classic “Feliz Navidad.”

FINAL THOUGHTS:

THIS IS ANOTHER MUST HAVE FOR YOUR SOUTHERN GOSPEL/TRADITIONAL CHRISTMAS PLAYLIST. THE ORIGINAL A JAZZY LITTLE CHRISTMAS RECORD IS ONE OF MY ALL-TIME FAVORITE PROJECTS FROM EH&SS AND THIS LIVE VERSION IS A PERFECT COMPANION PIECE. THERE IS TRULY NOTHING LIKE CHRISTMAS MUSIC DONE IN CLASSIC FOUR PART HARMONY. TOP NOTCH VOCALS, MUSICIANSHIP, AND PRODUCTION QUALITY.

HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: “O HOLY NIGHT,” “MISTER SANTA,” “PEACE ON EARTH,” “WE THREE KINGS,” AND “SOMETIMES I WONDER.”

5 OUT OF 5 STARS!

FOR MORE INFORMATION: www.erniehaase.com