Jay is out this week rehearsing with the Ken Demith Collection so friend of the show Keith Grasso is sitting in, and he’s bringing a substantial amount of, much needed, holiday cheer. Last year Keith decided to record his own rendition of “Blue Christmas” and he enjoyed the process so much that he’s done it again this year.

Songs:

Keith Grasso - “Christmastime is Here”

Keith Grasso & John Rossman - “Hard Candy Christmas”

In lieu of actual presents, Nick found some feel good news story to share via “News with Nick.” Notre Dame’s organist returns for the grand opening, Pearl Jam announces a tour, as does the Middle Aged Dad Jam Band.

Song: Barenaked Ladies - “Deck the Stills”

Greg wraps up our show this week with a Three for Thursday. New music from Opeth & Kelsey Shell, and a classic Christmas Carol by Bill Evans.

Songs:

Opeth - “§3”

Kelsey Shell (album - sleepwalker) - “When You’re Lying There”

Bill Evans - “Santa Clause is Coming to Town”

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays everyone, thanks so much for listening!

Greg brings some news & a guest this week. Friend of the show and Greg’s little brother, Austin Loman is back on the show this week! Greg & Austin usually jam over the holidays and decided to book a show this year. If you’re in or around DC on Saturday, December 28, you can catch The Loman Brothers at Bossa Bistro + Lounge from 7:30pm-9:30pm (all ages welcome).

Songs:

Austin Loman Band - “After Image”

Jeff Beck (Live at Ronnie Scotts) - “Angel (Footsteps)”

Alan Holdsworth - “Looking Glass”

Taylor Swift has just concluded her twenty-one month, 149 show, worldwide Eras Tour, which is on record as the highest grossing tour of all time. Jay brings us all the stats on Tay Tay Today.

Song: Bill Evans Trio - “Nardis (Live, 1970, Norway)”

Finally, Nick came across a Top 50 Albums of the 21st Century post on a spammy looking website. The post relied entirely on Metacritic to determine the albums and rankings. Metacritic is an aggregator of music reviews, weighted based on the critic and/or publication’s reputation. The resulting list is quite interesting. (https://stacker.com/music/50-best-albums-21st-century-according-critics).

Song: Wadada Lee Smith - “Dred Scott, 1857”

We kick things off this week with “News with Nick.” Joey Kramer closes his coffee line right as Push T launches his own. Meanwhile, Drake’s 2nd petition against UMG claims defamation while Kendrick’s GNX lands No. 1 album.

Song - Avishai Cohen - “Beyond”

Next up, Greg digs into Lamar’s new album GNX by way of “Review the Review.” The NY Times review by Jon Caramica portrays a provoked Lamar settling back into his comfort zone. The guys debate it out and ultimately, review the review. If you care to read the review, you can find it here.

Songs:

Kendrick Lamar - “Reincarnated”

Kendrick Lamar - “TV off”

Kendrick Lamar - “Peekaboo”

Jay shares some music discussions he had with his family at Thanksgiving and introduces us to his nephew’s current favorite band, The Rare Occasions (thanks Will). The topic at hand, however, is the 2024 Consequence Artist of the Year, Jack White. While Greg loved him from the start, it’s taken years of persistent awesomeness for Nick & Jay to fully embrace his. Nevertheless, the guys are all on board.

Songs:

The Rare Occasions - “Backwards”

Jack White - “Bless Yourself”