Holiday for Swing! [LP] in Bloomington, MN

One thing eternal prankster
Seth MacFarlane
takes seriously is
Frank Sinatra
. He abandoned yucks in 2011 for a de facto
Sinatra
tribute called
Music Is Better Than Words
-- a record that so exactingly replicated the sound and style of
Frank
's
Capitol
LPs, it was recorded in the same room in the
Capitol Records
building that the Chairman of the Board used -- and it was successful enough to open the door for a sequel in 2014.
MacFarlane
, perhaps wisely, opted to channel his
obsession into a Christmas record called
Holiday for Swing!
Once again, he works with
Joel McNeely
-- the arranger/producer behind
, plus all those animated homages to Wait 'Til Your Father Gets Home that
airs on Fox -- with the intent of re-creating the snazzy snap of the holiday albums from Old Blue Eyes. So,
is another full-bore
tribute and, like its predecessor, it isn't bad.
McNeely
is a deft arranger steeped in the work of
Nelson Riddle
and
Gordon Jenkins
is an able mimic, mimeographing
's cadences while wisely avoiding any attempts to conjure up the master's charm. Apart from the ever so slight notion that he's singing with a wink borrowed from
Burl Ives
-- a tell that gives away his status as a Gen-Xer weaned on Rankin & Bass holiday productions --
plays it straight, even when he's camping it up with
Sara Bareilles
on "Baby, It's Cold Outside" (
Norah Jones
is the other guest, singing on "Little Jack Frost Get Lost"), and this sincerity plays out in his favor.
loves
too much to mess with his music so he winds up with a retro salute that's thoroughly pleasant. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine