Since they were riding high on the strength of Hot, the Squirrel Nut Zippers convinced Mammoth to release a holiday album, Christmas Caravan, just months after they delivered Perennial Favorites, their follow-up to Hot.
It was an unconventional move, but the Zippers were never about convention, and, appropriately, Christmas Caravan isn't a conventional holiday record.
Relying heavily on original material, the crew has created the Christmas equivalent of one of their studio releases -- an album that revives swing and hot jazz, tweaking it a little bit with ironic humor yet remaining reverential of the music's heritage.
If anything, they take fewer liberties on Christmas Caravan than before -- there aren't as many jokes and the music sounds surprisingly restrained at places.
Still, the Zippers know how to have a good time, and that's exactly what Christmas Caravan does, thanks to their enthusiastic performances, strong songwriting and sharp covers ("Winter Weather," "Sleigh Ride").
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Winter WeatherTed Shapiro | Squirrel Nut Zippers | Play | 02:24 | 5 MB | 14 MB |
| 2 | Indian GiverJimbo Mathus | Squirrel Nut Zippers | Play | 03:37 | 8 MB | 24 MB |
| 3 | A Johnny Ace ChristmasTom Maxwell | Squirrel Nut Zippers | Play | 03:43 | 8 MB | 21 MB |
| 4 | My EvergreenTom Maxwell | Squirrel Nut Zippers | Play | 02:35 | 5 MB | 14 MB |
| 5 | Sleigh RideLeroy Anderson, Mitchell Parish | Squirrel Nut Zippers | Play | 03:09 | 7 MB | 20 MB |
| 6 | I'm Coming Home for ChristmasManny Cabral, Jimbo Mathus | Squirrel Nut Zippers | Play | 03:46 | 8 MB | 21 MB |
| 7 | Carolina ChristmasTom Maxwell, Ken Mosher | Squirrel Nut Zippers | Play | 01:51 | 4 MB | 12 MB |
| 8 | Gift of the MagiJimbo Mathus | Squirrel Nut Zippers | Play | 03:19 | 7 MB | 18 MB |
| 9 | Hot ChristmasTom Maxwell, Ken Mosher | Squirrel Nut Zippers | Play | 02:35 | 5 MB | 17 MB |
| 10 | Hanging up My Stockings | Squirrel Nut Zippers | Play | 07:11 | 16 MB | 35 MB |
| 34 mins | 78 MB | |||||
| 34 mins | 201 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leroy Anderson | Composer |
| 2 | Andrew Bird | Guest Artist, Violin |
| 3 | Phillip Broussaard | Engineer |
| 4 | Manny Cabral | Composer |
| 5 | Lambert | Photography |
| 6 | Brent Lambert | Mastering |
| 7 | Jimbo Mathus | Composer |
| 8 | Tom Maxwell | Composer, Liner Notes |
| 9 | Ken Mosher | Composer |
| 10 | Mike Napolitano | Mixing, Producer |
| 11 | Mitchell Parish | Composer |
| 12 | John Plymale | Engineer |
| 13 | Pat Sansone | Piano |
| 14 | Ted Shapiro | Composer |
| 15 | Squirrel Nut Zippers | Primary Artist |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |