90-year-old crooner Ken Steele combines with guitarist Peter Curtis on this album of love songs. Steele was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, where he started singing in clubs and radio before moving to Toronto. In Toronto, he became an in-demand singer and regularly appeared on numerous CBC radio and television programs and nightclubs around the city. As musical tastes changed to rock and roll, Ken began writing for tv and radio and eventually moved to LA.
While many jazz singers are capable of turning a standard inside-out with abstract improvising, sometimes it is just fun to hear a vocalist taking it straight, sticking close to the melody and the lyrics while swinging gently. For that, veteran singer Ken Steele perfectly fits the bill.
Read MoreThe subtitle of this collection is "Christmas music by Jewish songwriters," which turns out to be almost no limitation on the repertoire. In fact it is an enormous percentage of the Christmas songbook, as the selections here demonstrate.
Read MoreShut out from other parts of society, the Jewish songwriters created a new world of song that tied them directly to mainstream culture.
Read MoreA tasteful guitarist who always keeps the melody nearby, Curtis recalls Joe Pass at times during this solo recital, simultaneously filling in the theme, bass lines, chords and improvised sections.
Read More“Jewish Boyfriend” is a playful celebration of cultural and religious differences that mentions mistletoe, menorahs and Christmas trees.
Read MoreIt’s nonetheless a lovely album that showcases Curtis’ lyrical solo guitar chops. The title is a droll reference to the ironic fact that many (most?) of our “modern” Christmas tunes came from Jewish songwriters.
Read MoreWhat could be more Jewish about Christmas than having seasonal songs performed and composed by members of The Messiah’s tribe? Guitarist Peter Curtis takes a dozen Christmas tunes and gives dreidel spins to them in acoustic and electric guitar.
Read MoreClassically trained jazz guitarist/college professor Peter Curtis added an interesting twist to his first entry into the Christmas music genre.
Read MoreGuitarist PETER CURTIS sure knows how to develop an eye-catching title for an album, Christmas with Your Jewish Boyfriend Bella Barktalk Records)…
Read MoreGuitarist-composer Peter Curtis has a delightful album of solo guitar renditions of holiday music.
Read MoreA classical guitarist that also knows how to swing, Curtis adds his two cents to a growing sub-genre of paying tribute to Jews who wrote Christmas songs.
Read MoreThis guitar-vibes-bass-drums quartet initially reminds one of the Red Norvo-Tal Farlow-Charles Mingus vibes-guitar-bass trio of 1950. However Peter Curtis' group is more modern than that and not derivative of any past models.
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