The Hal Mercer Quartet – An Obligatory Christmas (1984) [Christmas Jazz | Full Album] скачать в хорошем качестве

The Hal Mercer Quartet – An Obligatory Christmas (1984) [Christmas Jazz | Full Album]

⚠️ Transparency Notice: While the aesthetic and narrative presented here are creative fiction, all musical works featured on this channel were generated, produced, or assisted by artificial intelligence. Timestamps 0:00 Jingle... Bells? 1:45 Carol Dinner’s Ready! 4:28 Is the World Joyed Yet? 6:57 Are Ye Faithful? 9:16 Clear Midnight 12:25 Silent Night 14:40 Who’s Wenceslas? 16:49 David’s Town 20:10 Roses Are for E’er 23:03 Got a Torch? 27:38 Kings, Kings, Kings 30:05 O Come On! 34:00 Deck This 37:26 God’ll Rest Ya All Right, Gents 40:32 Hark? Who’s Hark? 43:38 First Noel? Who’s Next? 46:37 Anybody Know Who’s Kid This Is? 49:41 Carol? She Got Mixed Up with the Coventry? 52:10 My Christmas Tree Fell Over 55:09 Get Away, You Filthy Manger! 57:29 Angels? Heard on High? The Angels Are Getting High Now? 59:13 Old Lynn’s Eyeing, or However the Hell You Say It Recovered from a box of seasonal reels and live broadcast masters, An Obligatory Christmas documents a short run of Hal Mercer performances recorded across November and December 1984. Booking notes and studio paperwork suggest the release was contractually required, a seasonal obligation folded into a late-career agreement, assembled quickly, and never treated as a major artistic statement. The recordings capture a much larger ensemble than the billing implies, with expanded horns and a broader rhythm section appearing across different nights. Despite the expanded lineup, Mercer still billed the group as “The Hal Mercer Quartet,” insisting it sounded cooler. Mercer’s indifference toward the holiday material also appears to have shaped the track titles themselves. On at least one reel, a staffer reads the chart names aloud and asks Mercer what to call each tune. The released titles match his answers verbatim, delivered flatly and with little apparent interest in the gig. That same attitude carries into the performances, where several songs wander far from their expected shapes. Even so, the playing remains consistently strong, with the ensemble treating obligation as an excuse to stretch and burn. Although the performances are documented as live dates, the surviving sources are almost entirely clean board or broadcast feeds. Room microphones were either not used, not retained, or mixed out entirely, leaving virtually no audience or venue ambience. As a result, the recordings play with an unusually dry, studio-like clarity, even as the arrangements stretch, drift, and behave like extended club sets. Unknown Master Recordings presents the surviving material intact. Tape hiss, minor distortion, tuning breaks, and uneven board mixes have been preserved to reflect the character of the source. An Obligatory Christmas The Hal Mercer Quartet Recorded live, November–December 1984, unreleased Track Listing 1. Jingle... Bells? 2. Carol Dinner’s Ready! 3. Is the World Joyed Yet? 4. Are Ye Faithful? 5. Clear Midnight 6. Silent Night 7. Who’s Wenceslas? 8. David’s Town 9. Roses Are for E’er 10. Got a Torch? 11. Kings, Kings, Kings 12. O Come On! 13. Deck This 14. God’ll Rest Ya All Right, Gents 15. Hark? Who’s Hark? 16. First Noel? Who’s Next? 17. Anybody Know Who’s Kid This Is? 18. Carol? She Got Mixed Up with the Coventry? 19. My Christmas Tree Fell Over 20. Get Away, You Filthy Manger! 21. Angels? Heard on High? The Angels Are Getting High Now? 22. Old Lynn’s Eyeing, or However the Hell You Say It Total runtime: approx. 1 hour 1 minute 37 seconds Recording Details Recorded: Live, November–December 1984 Locations: NYC-area club dates and seasonal broadcasts (venues unconfirmed) Source: Board feeds, broadcast masters, and room tapes Intended Format: Single LP, seasonal contract fulfillment Recovered: Mixed seasonal reels and loose cue sheets Catalog No.: UMR-MERCER-XMAS-1984 Personnel (as inferred from surviving notes) Hal Mercer – Piano (leader) Uncredited musicians, rotating by night Tenor saxophone and additional saxes Trumpet and additional horns Upright bass and electric bass Drums and auxiliary percussion Restoration performed by Unknown Master Recordings (2025) Recovered, restored, reissued. Traditional songs referenced in this release: Jingle Bells Carol of the Bells Joy to the World O Come, All Ye Faithful It Came Upon the Midnight Clear Silent Night Good King Wenceslas Once in Royal David’s City Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming Bring a Torch, Jeannette, Isabella We Three Kings O Come, O Come Emmanuel Deck the Halls God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen Hark! The Herald Angels Sing The First Noel What Child Is This Coventry Carol Greensleeves Away in a Manger Angels We Have Heard on High Auld Lang Syne