There are a few singers you hear every Christmas but should really be listening to all year long.
- Bing Crosby. (The man who invented crooning has so much to offer besides “White Christmas”)
- Ella Fitzgerald. (The greatest singer of the 20th Century. I’ll take no arguments.)
- The Andrews Sisters. (Or, switch to the Boswell Sisters for the other 11 months)
- Mel Tormé. (He wrote “The Christmas Song”, but he’s so much more)
And above all others, Nat “King” Cole! His Christmas albums are classics, it’s not Christmas until you hear him sing “The Christmas Song” but his singing and playing are both so subtle and brilliant. And too overlooked now.
These artists are all exemplars. It’s great that they get so much airplay every December. But don’t they really deserve to be heard year-round?