Some Virtual Stocking Stuffers

A couple of quick ideas for filling your time online during the holiday season and beyond:

Accujazz.com: Right now I’m listening to the “Swingin’ Christmas” channel, but there are multitudes of other channels to choose from and listen to. This one has really brightened my morning. They also have a blog where they review new releases, and occasionally refer you to other sites of interest. Check it out.

Jazz.com Slightly over a year old now, this is a jazz site that is informative, funny, and visually pleasing without being so visually heavy that it takes ten minutes for a page to load. Reviews, interviews, lots of good writing, images (check out the gallery for some other great jazz photogs & artists), and Lewis Porter’s Encyclopedia of Jazz Musicians. Author/Musician Ted Gioia’s site.

jazzvideoguy.tv   

http://www.planetbret.com/  Both of the above are sites that belong to Bret Primack, aka jazzvideoguy. Like mini-jazz docs. Interviews & performance mixed. Bret has been around for many years and has experience in all sorts of Jazz enterprises. Check him out.

Thanks to the Accublog for the links to Bret’s spaces.

Making Christmas Music Interesting Again

In an effort to make my own, and others, experiences with Christmas music interesting again, I have started reaching out to others ~ on Twitter, Facebook, and now here at the blog. I want people to tell me about their favorite Jazzy Christmas music. What would you recommend? Do you know of some obscure jazz Christmas stash? SHARE IT WITH ME, PLEASE! I have my own favorites, which I plan to share after Thanksgiving, which is really when Christmas/New Year music should start, as far as I’m concerned. NOT the day after Halloween.

So. Here is my plan. I get recommendations from friends, fellow tweeters, fellow music lovers, the postman, whoever. I then share those with you. Then, I share my own favorites with everyone else. Some of mine are less well known, and some are more common. So, don’t think it has to be something no one has ever heard of. Tell me what it says to YOU. Maybe I can find joy in Christmas music once again, and maybe there are other grinches out there who can too.