Mix some sleigh bells with jazz pop, intertwined with rock, Latin, opera, new age, country and avant-garde and you get my sometimes quirky, sometimes sentimental Christmas record, Fruitcake with Nuts. That may sound like everything but the kitchen sink thrown onto one album (hence the album title), but the elements that hold them all together are the piano and the alto voices of my friends Amy Hueneman and Markita Conner.
“So finespun and twinkly … you’d swear there were sugarplums dancing over your head.”​
“(Baumgardner) does a terrific job of tinkering with the arrangements … adding new crackle to several time-honored chestnuts.”​
“John Baumgardner’s Fruitcake with Nuts, which joins a teetering stack of Christmas-themed recordings, nevertheless finds a way to stand out in the crowd.”​
“I’m all for shaking things up, and there’s more than enough first-rate arrangements and performances to satisfy the most jaded Christmas music lover.”​
“Baumgardner has created a holiday album without the same old samey feel that we've all heard thousands of times before ... “​
“He draws the listener into the album’s Yuletide atmosphere with a sense of childlike wonder.”​
When I released this record back in 2011, it received some pretty decent reviews, which I'm super proud of. You’ll see some of them listed here but be sure to scroll down to the video section too, where you’ll see comments about each individual song.​
Here, you'll find links to Spotify and iTunes, but you can also stream or download the album everywhere - Amazon, Apple Music, Pandora, Deezer, and YouTube.
THE VOCALISTS​
Amy Hueneman​
Markita Conner
Becky Miller
Sherry Philpot
Erika Gaines
THE MUSICIANS
John Baumgardner, Piano & Percussion
Darrel Cotten, Drums
Steve Hall, Upright Bass
Gary Winters, Trumpet
Steven Taylor, Violin
Patti Sison, Violin
Jonathan Mueller, Viola
Wendy Doyle, Cello
Matt Hueneman, Guitar & Electric Bass
Linda Starks, Violin
​
“As a wintry wind encircles everything, Baumgardner begins playing a lilting rendition of the traditional ‘Good King Wencelas,’ drawing the listener into the album’s Yuletide atmosphere with a sense of childlike wonder.”
“ ‘Love and Joy (the Wassail Song)’ adds a marching band rhythm by drummer Darrel Cotton, as Baumgardner gathers himself a series of spritely runs at the keyboard. As a full complement of strings and bells joins them, Amy Hueneman makes her first appearance as a vocalist – singing with an open-hearted, hand-clapping joy. The track is as propulsive as it is spirit filled.”
“Baumgardner’s actually three tracks in before he begins switching things up – first by settling into a kind of twilight remembrance at the piano for an interesting take on ‘Santa Claus Is Coming To Town,’ a song typically so upbeat that it threatens to send you to the dentist for a cavity. Hueneman downshifts into a quieter, more emotional place, too, and the track’s late-night mood is complete.”
“Upright bassist Steve Hall helps propel the group into a jazz-inflected swing on ‘Come On-a My House,’ perhaps most famously done by Rosemary Clooney. Markita Conner takes over on vocals, singing with a fleet sense of purpose, even as Baumgardner – ever the smart companion – matches her stride for stride.”
“Conner again handles the lead on ‘Go Tell It On The Mountain.’ Baumgardner and Co. begin with a delicately wrought opening refrain, before ramping up into a pop-rock sizzle that at first completely modernizes this traditional gospel tune.”
“Baumgardner’s circular piano shapes are perfectly completed by a well-placed string arrangement and Conner’s oaken turn at the microphone. Hueneman returns to sing a soaring background accompaniment, and their voices intertwine with a perfect symmetry. The chorus also includes Sherrie Philpot.”
“ ‘Christmas On TV,’ the Chris Isaak track, is given a tender-hearted update – with Hueneman’s lead joined by Baumgardner’s contemplative piano asides. Becky Miller sings in soft duet, making the second of three appearances on Fruitcake with Nuts. The violin solo, which echoes the traditional composition “Silent Night,” only adds to the note-perfect elegiac tone.”
“’Zat You, Santa Claus?” is funky and upbeat. It begins with a snowy swirl of air and an off kilter clash of sound and starts pounding away with a suspense building piano and percussion mixture that gets your pulse pounding. The steady beat blends with some sound effects like doors opening and scratching coming from inside the chimney. The lyrics are fun and will make you laugh. The multi-instrumental element to this piece and the harmonies are excellent. A classic holiday song, this is one of my favorites on this album. The use of theatrical elements makes the piece pop and really highlights what this band is capable of.”
“Hueneman returns for the Grinch favorite ‘Welcome Christmas,’ another rocking redo that starts with this very traditional introductory segment. After the expected holiday bells, and a showy dusting of organ fills, the track bursts out of its shell with a limber rhythm led by electric bassist Matt Hueneman, who co-produced Fruitcake with Nuts alongside Baumgardner. Not sure how the Whos would feel about this Whoville-shaking update, but it sure is entertaining.”
“ ‘The Christmas Tree That Ran Away,’ memorable from the Fisher Price record-player days as performed by the Peter Pan Caroleers, is approached with a kind, irony-free reverence. Hueneman approaches the lyric – told from the point of view of a Yuletide tree that, at first, doesn’t get selected – without any artifice, echoing her similarly sensitive reading of ‘Santa Claus Is Coming To Town.’ “
“ ‘Waltz of the Angels,’ with a lead by Philpot and a French spoken interlude by Barry Comer, is so finespun and twinkly – with Baumgardner doubling his own keyboard signature at the toy piano – that you’d swear there were sugarplums dancing over your heads.”
“The album closes, perhaps as expected, with ‘Auld Lang Syne,’ but again Baumgardner’s arrangement keeps even this choice from feeling rote. Linda Stark’s lonely turn on the violin is paired with another of Conner’s darkly intriguing vocals.”