Have Yourself a Very Quiet Christmas

Take a break from the frazzled and frantic vibe of the holidays with "Have Yourself a Very Quiet Christmas." This episode of Night Lights emphasizes the more laidback side of holiday music; even "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" gets a cool-jazz treatment from the Dave Brubeck Quartet, while Joe Pass delivers a reflective guitar version of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," and Paul Desmond joins the Modern Jazz Quartet for a poignant reading of "Greensleeves." There are some little-heard and unconventional seasonal tracks such as Judy Holliday's "It Must Be Christmas" and hardbop pianist Horace Silver's "Peace," and tasteful nods to standard holiday-jazz fare such as Vince Guaraldi's "What Child Is This" and two of Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn's arrangements from The Nutcracker Suite.