Shame on me for being late to the party on this one now that it's five months after Hanukkah and Xmas - not that this album isn't merry enough to enjoy all year long.



The vast majority of Xmas LPs feel uninspired, perfunctory and bland, verging on being little more than cynical cash grabs and catalog fillers that exploit the artist's fans. But then, out of nowhere, there is "It's a Holiday Soul Party" by Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings (backing vocals by the fantastic Shaun & Starr) to restore our faith in total musical integrity by an outfit who are genuinely feeling the spirit of the season.



The festivities begin with a joyous and energetic, brassy and raucous Dap-Kings original celebrating the "8 Days (of Hanukkah)." It is appropriately the lead-off number, since Hanukkah precedes Xmas on the calendar (plus, Hannukkah songs are rather few and far between). Now that the album has your full attention, here comes the brand-new Xmas soul classic-in-the-making, the gripping, reality-based "Ain't No Chimneys in the Projects," penned by Sharon Jones and producer Bosco Mann. With the superlative support of Shaun & Starr, "Just Another Christmas Song," whose lyrics name-check a string of well-known titles, sounds like Jones is fronting some stellar girl-soul group from 1969 on this midtempo sweetly funky gem.



Some familiar seasonal songs are here in the form of "Funky Little Drummer Boy" (the title tells the story!); "White Christmas" as it has never been heard before - sizzlingly fast and furiously funky; "Silver Bells as a gospel-funk hybrid; and a sensationally rendered "Silent Night" as a slow blues.



Speaking of blues, Charles Brown's "Please Come Home for Christmas" might seem a bit too obvious an inclusion, but this has to be one of the best covers of it ever attempted. Jones, as she is throughout this album - no matter what the style - is deep into her vocal sweet spot. The off-the-wall "Big Bulbs" features magnificent trumpet and multi-tracked vocal harmonies. The outstanding production values elevate the fun quotient considerably.



This set winds down with the mellow sixties sound of "World of Love," with its essential theme of making a better world for the children; and then comes to a close with the Dap-Kings' soul-jazzy, horn-driven instrumental take on "God Rest Ye Merry Gents."



This album really packs a wallop in its 34 minutes, as it joins the ranks of great soul holiday LPs of all time.