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The Friel Brothers (Randy & Skip) have a split personality. First, their genre-bending Evergreen Christmas presents music that is one part wicked blues, a large dollop of acoustic folk, and a liberal sprinkling of jazz. Second, the brothers apply these disparate genres to a mix of traditional holiday classics and six spankin' new pieces. Third, the Friel Brothers combine vocal and instrumental selections. The resulting melange is pleasing and fun.

The album opens in rip-roaring fashion with Randy's The Longest Night, a hard-core blues number through and through; Randy shares his vocals with Geri Mingori, who growls and howls up a storm. The next track, however, is a relatively gentle Skip Friel original; True Santa is a folksy delight. And so the story goes--Evergreen Christmas provides something for almost everyone.

From stem to stern, this offering had me swaying in my chair. The traditional spiritual Mary Had a Baby is hand-clapping, soulful sweetness, Randy's Jingle Bell Man is a down-to-earth anthem about homeless street musicians during the holiday season (complete with a cool sax solo), and Skip's award-winning Evergreens (the longest track at nearly five minutes) is a pop/folk pleasure about the things in our lives that remain constant ("evergreen").

The vocals here are all very nice--textured, full of character and warmth, welcoming, and never boring. The instrumentals deserve special mention, too. They offer fun interludes of jazzed-up folksiness; the harmonica riffs on Deck the Halls are particularly grand.

Thank you, Randy & Skip, for entertaining me and my family for almost an hour this evening in Minnesota. Your company and musicality were much appreciated!

--Carol Swanson
(Reviewed in 2009)

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From the liner notes:

Musicians:
Skip Friel
Randy Friel
Drew Dillard
Danny Eyer
Howard Isaacson
Andy Lalasis
Armand Lenchek
Cindy McNellis
Geri Mingori
Rich Eidolfino
Martin Somers
Bill Truluck

Recorded and mixed at Sculville Studios, Sculville, NJ

Produced by Randy Friel

Dedicated to Ellie Friel


From the artist's Website:

VIRGINIA BEACH−Nov. 1, 2008−Local musicians Skip and Randy Friel are pleased to announce the release of Evergreen Christmas, a dynamically resonant collection of original and traditional songs they hope will become enduring holiday classics. The album will be available for purchase after its Dec. 1 release date.


Evergreen Christmas is a delightful blend of traditional holiday songs, contemporary folk, classic blues/rock, with a sprinkling of gospel and jazz. "Skip comes from an acoustic folk/rock point of view. I do my mash up of blues and jazz and together we meet in the middle," said Randy. The vocal harmonies of the brothers are the musical centerpiece, as well as the common thread of each song performed in the holiday spirit. "There's something unique about the sound of brothers singing together," notes Randy. "The Everly Brothers and the Beach Boys each had a unique sound. I hear that same quality when listening to Skip and I; it's that cool brotherly sound when we sing harmony."


Meticulously woven over the course of a year, the album was recorded in Randy's New Jersey studio and in Virginia Beach. The 16-track collection features six originals penned by the brothers and some new twists to a few Christmas classics. It offers an organic palette of acoustic and electric instruments fused with richly textured voices. "Each genre flows seamlessly from one offering to the next," said Skip. "Our latest collaboration truly reflects the diversity and versatility of both our musical backgrounds," he continued.

The Friel Brothers

Evergreen Christmas

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Track List