Recorded in England, Hamilton's first Christmas album finds him joined by the joined by The London String Ensemble as well as pianist Alan Broadbent (who handles all the conducting and arranging), bassist Dave Green, guitarist Dave Cliff and drummer Alan Ganley.

Broadbent - a highly lyrical and melodic player whose influences include Bill Evans, Wynton Kelly, Nat "King" Cole and Tommy Flanagan - has done arranging for Concord artists ranging from legendary singer Mel Torme to pianist Marian McPartland, and his lush arrangements on such Christmas songs as "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town," "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" and "White Christmas" leave no doubt that he was the right one for this job.

Though Hamilton's primary emphasis is on American Christmas songs of the 20th Century, one of the CD's highlights is a reading of the traditional English piece "Greensleeves"_which has also been recorded by Coleman Hawkins (one of Hamilton's main influences), John Cortland and other jazz greats.

With the release of Christmas Love Song, Hamilton's Concord output has exceeded 30 dates as a leader_which isn't half bad for someone who, 20 years ago, was considered hopelessly behind the times. When the New Englander came on He scene in the mid-1970s, much of the jazz world was shocked to find a young man in his early 20s playing in a style recalling the mid-1940s. Fusion, modal post-loop and the avant-garde didn't interest Hamilton, whose inspirations were swing and very early bebop. At a time when other "Baby Boomer" tenor saxmen were into John Coltrane, Wayne Shorter, Joe Henderson, Grover Washington, Jr. and Joe Farrell, Hamilton's breathy sound drew on such influences as Coleman Hawkins, Lester "The Prez" Young, Ike Quebec, Ben Webster and Chu Berry.

But while Hamilton, who is now 42, was considered an anomaly back then, it later turned out that paradoxically, his retro approach was ahead of its time. When Wynton & Branford Marsalis achieved so much recognition in the 1980s, it became fashionable for younger players (whom the jazz media have dubbed "The Young Lions") to play acoustic straight-ahead jazz exclusively. But it cannot be stressed enough that Hamilton was a "Young Lion" several years before The Marsalis Brothers signed with Columbia Records and became so visible. Make no mistake: Hamilton was a "Young Lion" before it was in vogue. As New York Post critic Chip Defeat it, 'Jo one could have guessed it in the mid 1970s, (but) Hamilton represented the advance guard of a whole cadre of young players who have been rediscovering and re-interpreting older traditions in jazz."

Except for an album on Famous Door Records and the 1978 Progressive recording Grand Appearance, Hamilton has done all of his recording as a leader for Concord. In 1977, he set the tone for his recording career with his first Concord date, the unapologetically traditional Scott Hamilton Is A Good Wind Who Is Blowing Us No Ill (a title taken from a quote by the late jazz critic Leonard Feather). And he continued to live up to his reputation as an entirely straight-ahead player on subsequent Concord efforts like Scoff Hamilton 2 in 1978, Tenor Shoes in 1979 and Close Up in 1982. Over the years, Concord captured Hamilton in a wide variety of settings ranging from an organ combo featuring Mike LeDonne (1994's Organic Duke, a tribute to Duke Ellington), to an orchestral album (Scott Hamilton With Strings in 1993.) One of Hamilton's greatest accomplishments, With Strings united him with a 20 piece string orchestra conducted by Alan Broadbent. With the two having worked so well together on that album, it was only fitting that Broadbent should play a key role on Christmas Love Song.

Hamilton has been joined by more than a few heavy hitters at Concord, including baritone sax innovator Gerry Mulligan on 1986's Soft Lights And Sweet Music, guitarist Charlie Byrd on 1988's It's A Wonderful World, pianist Tommy Flanagan on 1996's After Hours and pianist Gene Harris on At Last. Hamilton has had no problem being featured on two- or three-tenor dates, including 1981 's Tour De Force with Al Cohn and Buddy Tate, 1991's Groovin 'High with Ken Peplowski (also a Concord artist) and Britain's Spike Robinson; and 1987's A Sound Investment with Flip Phillips. Sadly, Mulligan and Cohn have since passed away.

Concord has made a point of documenting Hamilton on stage as well as in the studio. Among the live Hamilton dates Concord has released are the above mentioned Tour De Force, 1978's Scott Hamilton& Warren Cache With Scott's Band in New York (1978), The Second Set (1983), In Concert (1983) and Live At The Brecon Jazz Festival (1994).

Through it all, Hamilton has repeatedly shown himself to be an impressively consistent player. Fads and flavors of the month may come and go in music, but they have had little or no impact on Hamilton during his 20 years at Concord. From Scott Hamilton Is A Good Wind... in 1977 to Christmas Love Song in 1997, the improviser has demonstrated that quality and sincerity are indeed timeless.

November 1997

Alex Henderson has written about Scott Hamilton extensively and presently contributes to Jazziz, The All Music Guide, All That Jazz and many other national publications.