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Our Review

Jazz comes in many flavors; some is sassy sunshine, some is crazy cool, and some is sublimely soulful. Donna Ruzicka's Season's Greetings is a holiday album that largely occupies the final category; her deep vocals project a raw, emotive richness, but also an ache, a longing that is difficult to define. As a result, this album presents an outstanding alternative for those seeking a thinking person's jazz interpretation of Christmas standards. Very nicely done!

The opening cut is Thad Jones' excellent A Child Is Born, which effectively sets the tone for the album. Ruzicka's emotive voice conveys a tender sincerity that had me hanging on every word. The instrumental support is terrific throughout; I especially enjoyed the harmonica flourishes on tracks like the superb Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas (apart from the medley, the longest cut). The harmonica interludes, which are somewhat unusual in holiday releases, sweetly underscore the soulfulness of Ruzicka's renditions.

Ruzicka flips her sunny side up on her exuberant Go Tell It on the Mountain (final portion of The Christmas Story-A Medley, lovey-dovey Sleigh Ride, and sweetly upbeat Winter Wonderland (with a killer acoustic bass foundation). These numbers provide a complementary counterpoint and help contribute to a rewarding total package.

The brooding What a Wonderful World is the perfect close (more harmonica!). Donna Ruzicka's Season's Greetings is an extremely thoughtful holiday greeting for those who enjoy well-executed and deeply personal jazz vocals when December rolls around.

--Carol Swanson
(Reviewed in 2006)

Our Review

People with whom I discuss music know about my ambivalence toward certain styles of jazz. Although all types of music can be either good or bad, no other form of music can be bad while at the same time pretending to be good to quite the degree as jazz. Or maybe it is the listeners who are pretenders, and not the music itself. In any event, both the jazzers I've met and my jazz listening friends all agree that I "just don't get it". Well, after an afternoon of listening to Donna Ruzicka's Season's Greetings, I get it a lot better than ever before. Her gentle, unassuming vocals, along with the sweet, sweet jazz instrumentalists who round out her sound, produce a jazz even a moron like myself could learn to crave.

Speak softly, but carry a big stick, said Teddy Roosevelt. He might as well have been referring to Donna Ruzicka's voice. Hers might be the most arresting vocals I have heard this season. Her voice is pure and simple, her style conveys earnestness, and her phrasing derives as much power from rest as from the vocalizations themselves. At times, I hear in her voice a sound that reminds me of what Joni Mitchell was trying to achieve with her (failed) Mingus project. Wow. I don't mean to hate on Joni, but it's a fact that Donna Ruzicka beats Joni hands down as an interpreter of this form while singing in her same register and conveying her same vulnerability and pathos.

Nor do Donna Ruzicka's guys let her down. Led by Tom Theabo's guitar, this ensemble's minimalism is a perfect fit for Ruzicka's mild stylings. But it isn't too, too minimal, in the arid way of so many jazz bands I've heard. It has a lushness and a warmth that I just don't often hear on a jazz record. Of particular interest, her band features Jim Wilfahrt on harmonica, who gives several of these tunes a sound that harks back to early Stevie Wonder, or even a Willie Nelsonish sound, back when both were cranking out hits back in the '70s.

The songs themselves are, for the most part, pop standards that lend themselves to these treatments. Case in point: Mel Torme's The Christmas Song, the archetypal easy listening favorite. Of special interest is the finale, What A Wonderful World. I loved this inclusion, because it is so rare. In over one thousand recordings, it occurs on only three other CDs in my database.

I thoroughly enjoyed Donna Ruzicka's Season's Greetings. It was an eye-opening jazz experience for me, and I suspect it will have a similar impact on other curmudgeons like myself the world over.

--Richard Banks
(Reviewed in 2006)

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From the liner notes:

All songs arranged by Tom Theabo
Engineered by: Tom Washatka
Mixed by: Tom Washatka and Janet Planet
Mastered by Tom Washatka

Musicians:
Donna Ruzicka-Vocals
John Gibson-Acoustic Bass
Mark Powers-Drums
Tom Theabo-Guitar/Synthesizer
Tom Washatka-Saxophones
Jim Wilfahrt-Harmonica

Donna Ruzicka

Season's Greetings

Artist link

Track List