Harry Connick Jr.
Harry for the Holidays
(Sony)
Connick’s 1993 album When My Heart Finds Christmas was geared for quiet family nights sitting around the tree in front of a roaring fire, but his latest is for those that like their Christ- mas music with a jazzy edge. Maybe he feels the kids are 10 years older—and have heard of Ben Webster and Thelonious Monk—because these arrangements are steer clear of familiar territory. But don’t let a little rhythmic shift and melody tinkering scare you. Fans of his first holiday disc will want to scoop this up.
—Dave Hayden
This article appears in Dec 6-12, 2007.