Grown-Up Christmas List - Jazz Piano Solo - David Foster & Linda Thompson Jenner

#med (Music.Every.Day)

This is video #772 of my video posting project. I have been working on this project since November 2023--learning and posting a video of NEW piano music every. single. day!

Today's piece is "Grown-Up Christmas List" by David Foster & Linda Thompson-Jenner. This arrangement can be found in Hal Leonard's collection of Jazz Piano Solos in the volume called "Christmas Classics". This collection of jazz arrangements was written by Brent Edstrom.

I love that this arrangement has a little hint of Latin lilt to it. The offbeat rhythms suit that style really well. It is a sweet Christmas Classic -- I have heard this a few times but am not overly familiar with it. It was originally sung by Natalie Cole. Amy Grant recorded it with a lot of success -- she even added her own verse to it. David Foster apparently offered co-writing credits to her which she refused. (I wonder if she regrets it!) Some people who have re-recorded this hit use her verse. Kelly Clarkson also has a version that probably most people are more familiar with.

I like it--it's gentle, and you know me, I love Latin jazz. Plus it has a beautiful sentiment in the lyrics: "No more lives torn apart / That wars would never start / And time would heal all hearts / And everyone would have a friend /
And right would always win / And love would never end / This is my grown-up Christmas list".

Tune in tomorrow for more of my #music.every.day experiment!.