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Ultra-Lounge Christmas CocktailsMy theory about the lounge music craze of the 1990's is that it arose because so many consumers were put off by the unrelenting negativity and noise of the alternative rock and gangsta rap ruling radio and MTV (back when MTV played music). Normal folks wanted to get excited about - not disgusted or angered by - the music they were listening to. And now they could, even if the songs were decades old! It didn't hurt that the rise of compact disc in the 1980's had spurred the major labels to undertake a massive reissue of vintage music that had, for the most part, been gathering dust for decades. These streams crossed with Capitol Records' voluminous Ultra-Lounge series, which was trumpeted extensively in middlebrow media like National Public Radio and the New York Times. And, when Ultra-Lounge addressed the holidays, Christmas Cocktails (1996) rode the phenomenon all the way to the bank.

Christmas Cocktails and its 1997 sequel, Christmas Cocktails Part 2, were drawn exclusively from the deep, deep vaults of Capitol Records - including iconic artists like Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Dean Martin, Nat King Cole, Lou Rawls, and Peggy Lee. The series overlaps tremendously with an earlier Capitol series upon which I also heap praise (read more). But, the Ultra-Lounge Christmas Cocktails series will be much easier to find, either online or in your local record emporium. These discs are, in a word, wonderful, deftly spotlighting the swinging, kooky, exotic side of easy listening music - mostly sidestepping the more pervasive boring side. Nicely annotated, too. My only complaint is that several tracks are shoehorned into unnatural-sounding medleys. After a few martinis, however, you won't notice the difference. I know I didn't.

It's worth noting that most Christmas music enthusiasts will already have an album - maybe two, probably more - by the aforementioned artists. The real value in Ultra-Lounge Christmas Cocktails for hardcore collectors, then, is the weird, esoteric tracks. Did you have anything in your collection by Capitol Studio Orchestra, Eddie Dunstedter, the Hollyridge Strings, or Caiola & Ortolani? Me neither! The series also picks up some stray tracks by Nancy Wilson, who wouldn't record a full Christmas album until 2001. And, it rescues a couple of cuts from Julie Christy's under-appreciated, hard-to-find 1961 Capitol album, This Time Of Year, as well as Jimmy McGriff's 1963 Sue album, Christmas With McGriff, which has never been properly reissued. But, special mention must be made of Billy May's 1950 non-LP single "Do You Believe In Santa Claus?" It was originally credited to only to "Santa Claus," but it's actually sung by Thurl Ravenscroft - the man who would later sing "You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch" (read more).

Ultra-Lounge Christmas Cocktails Part TwoBut, really, it's quite impossible to summarize how marvelous this music is, let alone how completely lost this bygone era is. Songs like Kay Starr's "The Man With The Bag" or Billy May's "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer Mambo" speak simultaneously of such innocence and such carnality - it was as though America was going through adolescence, almost (but not quite) ready to enter adulthood with its attendant cynicism and ennui. The Christmas Cocktails series paints a vivid picture of those post-war, pre-Beatles days, albeit one viewed through the red-and-green filter of the holidays.

Money On The Table

Late in 2004, Capitol released Ultimate Christmas Cocktails, a boxed set containing the first two volumes plus a previously unavailable third installment, Ultra-Lounge Christmas Cocktails, Part 3. In a certain sense, it was a stone rip-off: the "box" is really just a slipcase - nothing new, forcing collectors to buy the first two volumes again to obtain the third (which, adding insult to injury, was subsequently released separately in 2005). Plus, the newly-minted third disc fails to maintain the standards established by the first two - fewer tracks, skimpier packaging. Nevertheless, the music is pure swank, highlighted by a heretofore unreleased Julie London track that borders on pornographic!

Unless you already own the first two discs - or even if you do - Ultimate Christmas Cocktails is an easy, affordable way to tiptoe through the Yule lounge. Even cheaper is Ultra-Lounge: The Best Of Christmas Cocktails (2007), a concise sampler for those who prefer not to imbibe too deeply. Finally, in a true sign of the times, Capitol eventually released Ultra-Lounge: Christmas Cocktails Volume 4 (2012) for download and streaming - no vinyl or CD - with tracks ranging from Jan Garber's "Here Comes Santa Claus" (1949) to Bill Haley's "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" (1968). It included several relatively rare recordings - though nothing too revelatory - and sounded quite nice (to the extent that condensed digital media can), but it came with no documentation whatsoever. Because, really, who cares about historical context and cultural legacy? Certainly not people who buy vintage Christmas music. Pshaw!

Ultra-Lounge Christmas Cocktails Part Three
Ultra-Lounge Christmas Cocktails Volume Four
Ultra-Lounge: Ultimate Christmas Cocktails
Ultra-Lounge: Best Of Christmas Cocktails

In fact, the release of the Ultra-Lounge: Christmas Cocktails series straddled several eras in the music business, and it reflected roil in that industry that still hasn't subsided. The first few volumes were released on compact disc at the tail end of that format's dominance. By the time Christmas Cocktails Volume 4 was released, the CD was on life support, and digital downloads were dominant - though streaming would soon supplant it as the favored medium for millenials. And, for what it's worth, all four volumes of Ultra-Lounge: Christmas Cocktails, as well as The Best Of Christmas Cocktails, would eventually be made available for download and streaming. But, the first two iconic volumes were reissued on vinyl in 2014, as the next generation embraced the technology of their grandparents. The more things change.... [top of page]

Albums Albums

SongsEssential Songs

  • - Christmas Cocktails (1996)
  • Cha-Cha All The Way (Capitol Studio Orchestra, 1958)
  • Christmas Is (Lou Rawls, 1967)
  • Christmas Kisses (Ray Anthony, 1961)
  • The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire) (Nat King Cole, 1961)
  • (Everybody's Waiting For The) The Man With The Bag (Kay Starr, 1950) Top 100 Song
  • Holiday On Skis (Caiola & Ortolani, 1967)
  • I'd Like You For Christmas (Julie London, 1957)
  • I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm (Dean Martin, 1959)
  • The Nutcracker Suite (Les Brown & His Band Of Renown, 1958)
  • Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer Mambo (Billy May, 1954)
  • What Are You Doing New Year's Eve? (Nancy Wilson, 1963)
  • Winter Wonderland (Peggy Lee, 1965)
  • - Christmas Cocktails Part 2 (1997)
  • All I Want For Christmas (Is My Two Front Teeth) (Nat King Cole, 1949)
  • Auld Lang Syne (Guy Lombardo & His Royal Canadians, 1956)
  • Baby It's Cold Outside (Dean Martin, 1959)
  • Christmas Island (Bob Atcher & The Dinning Sisters, 1950)
  • Christmas Waltz (Nancy Wilson, 1968)
  • Exotic Night (Martin Denny, 1967)
  • Frosty The Snowman (The Ventures, 1965)
  • Happy Holiday (Peggy Lee, 1965)
  • Jingle All The Way (Lena Horne, 1966)
  • Jingle Bell Rock (Wayne Newton, 1966)
  • The Merriest (June Christy, 1961)
  • Merry Christmas Baby (Lou Rawls, 1967)
  • Warm December (Julie London, 1956)
  • - Christmas Cocktails Part 3 (2005)
  • Baby, It's Cold Outside (Sammy Davis Jr. and Carmen McRae, 1957)
  • Buon Natale (Means Merry Christmas To You) (Nat King Cole, 1959)
  • Do You Believe In Santa Claus? (Billy May, 1950)
  • Frosty The Snowman (Bing Crosby, 1962)
  • Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas (Lou Rawls, 1967) Top 100 Song
  • I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm (Julie London, 1964)
  • Jingle Bells (Johnny Mercer, 1947)
  • Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! (Wayne Newton, 1966)
  • A Marshmallow World (Ray Anthony, 1950)
  • Santa Claus Is Coming To Town (Lena Horne, 1966)
  • Sorry To See You Go (June Christy, 1961)
  • That's What I Want For Christmas (Nancy Wilson, 1963)
  • - Christmas Cocktails Volume 4 (2012)
  • Blue Christmas (Bob Atcher & The Dinning Sisters, 1950)
  • Brazilian Sleigh Bells (Ferrante & Teicher, 1962)
  • Christmas Journey (Wayne Newton, 1966)
  • Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane) (Jan Garber & His Orchestra, 1949)
  • Jungle Bells (Dingo-Dongo-Day) (Les Paul & Mary Ford, 1953)
  • Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree (Bill Haley & His Comets, 1968)
  • 'Twas the Night Before Christmas (Fred Waring & The Pennsylvanians, 1961)
  • Winter Weather (Joe Williams & Harry 'Sweets' Edison, 1961)

Further ListeningFurther Listening

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