Marleena Barber – Once Upon A December

Marleena Barber – Once Upon A December – Album Review

I’ve enjoyed a pretty good run.  Of all the people I know that do what I do for a living, I’ve admittedly managed to steer clearer of holiday music than most have by comparison, but alas, the Christmas reaper eventually comes for us all.  People always ask me, like I’m sure they ask you too – whaddya want for Christmas?  My response is usually a world without Christmas music, and Santa never seems to comply.

Anyhow…here we are…Marleena Barber is the one to crack the seal this year with her album Once Upon A December…but don’t go thinkin’ that the floodgates are just open and it’s time to send your Christmas tunes my way.  I promise you’ll wanna think twice about sending your yuletide tunes to a Grinch like me.

Scared yet?  You should be!  Jokes on you though…holiday music might not be my favorite thing (it really, really isn’t)…but I’m still the same objective critic you’ve always known me to be.  When something’s good, I tell ya.  When something’s not, I tell ya that.  It’s real simple…I’m not a complicated person.  As “White Christmas” started up Barber’s new album, I appreciated that she opened the set with one of the few songs of the season that I never seem to really get too tired of, and for sure, I think she’s got a solid jazz-meets-showtune type of style that’s executed with passion and professionalism.  The passion is audible, but also implied – I don’t think anyone that’s not like, completely nuts about Christmas makes a Christmas album, you feel me?  And as far as the professionalism is concerned, you can hear it in all aspects of the music from the bass to the percussion to the piano, and of course within Marleena’s voice as well.  She’s clearly a confident singer with a whole lotta talent, doesn’t shy away from stepping into the spotlight for a big moment, and ready to spread that good good holiday cheer.

There we go!  Something a little more melancholy and moody…that’s what I’m talkin’ about!  I wasn’t familiar with “Once Upon A December,” the title track from her album.  As far as I know, these are all cover tunes…but somehow this one escaped me.  It’s funny how when you get what you want, like this track not being a typical happy-hap type of Christmas tune for myself personally, that you can often end up wanting the opposite all of a sudden.  I don’t mind what I hear in “Once Upon A December” because I think that Marleena has a whole bunch of natural talent and a great voice that’s always going to earn her a passing grade at the very least…but yeah…I dunno…there was just something about this track that didn’t bring as much joy to my world as I thought this more melancholy & mysterious vibe would have.  I appreciate the classic sound at work here…it’s very artistically designed, and almost sounds like a period piece of sorts, like it came from long ago.  Which it might have for all I know; I don’t know the history on this tune…but yeah…it sounds like what you’d imagine they’d sing in a Game Of Thrones Xmas special.

A smoother Jazz approach is probably what I’m hearing works best for Marleena’s vocals and style I suppose.  I really like what she did with “Sending You A Little Christmas” overall…I think that’s a winning combination for her.  It’s sweet, but not TOO sweet…Christmassy, but not TOO Christmassy, you know what I mean?  This is one of those tracks that just sounds good, and were it not for the Christmas references, you might even be inclined to listen to it all year long.  Marleena sings this really well and has a relentless focus when it comes to finding the right gears for each song she’s put onto this record.  I consider that to be one of her most positive attributes really – she does what the songs are genuinely calling out for, and she’s not the kind of singer that over-sings or adds too much flair where it’s not really necessary.  She’s got a great understanding of where to go with each melody as she sings, and “Sending You A Little Christmas” is a stellar example of that.  The mix on the song itself might be able to use a little more sparkle and shine…it’s a bit soft in comparisons to the tracks around it, but good tune.

Even when she goes too far to the traditional side of the Christmas catalog for my liking, like she does by adding “Little Drummer Boy” to this lineup…my beef isn’t with her vocals – she still sounds great.  I might have a little beef with her song selection at times, but let’s be real here – that was bound to come up with a lineup full of Christmas tunes at some point along the way.  And here we are, we’ve arrived, and that moment has come!  I’m sorry y’all…I just can’t do the “pa rum pa pum pum” stuff anymore is all – that’s not on her, that’s on me.  If you dig that, or you dig “Little Drummer Boy” in your Xmas set-lists, then I’m sure you’ll be fully satisfied with Barber’s version…my ears can’t hear a reason not to like it if you’re a fan of the song.  It is so hard to do something new with Christmas tunes, and while I recognize that’s not always the goal…in fact, it’s rarely the goal with Christmas-based records…it’s still hard not to crave that as a person that spends their life listening to music and has been subjected to thousands of Christmas tunes throughout the years.  So for me, the further that Marleena leaned away from being too traditional with it, the better my opinion seemed to be of what she’s got here on this album, but by the same token, she’s got songs like “Little Drummer Boy” that’ll appeal to those looking for more of a faithful rendition of the songs they’ve always had with’em while making memories during the holidays.

By the time I got to “Oh Holy Night,” I felt like I knew what to expect.  Not in a bad way – I mean more like, well…we’ve kind of experienced how Marleena would approach the different levels of glee or the sweetness in holiday music, and we’ve also heard how she’d approach songs with a bit more depth and dimension to them as well – so I knew she’d knock “Oh Holy Night” right outta the park by this point in the lineup, and I’m proud to report that she did.  Again, anything that’s not way over the top in happiness is probably going to stand a way better chance of appealing to my ears on a personal level, so you betcha, “Oh Holy Night” is another Christmas cut that I really don’t mind at all.  Hearing Barber hit the most demanding moments with spectacular tone and confidence was honestly a real treat – an early present, if you will.  There’s a spot in the finale of “Oh Holy Night” that has her shining brighter than ever in what I’d tell ya is the most significant highlight for her vocals in the first half of the album, and it really made me smile to hear her hit the target with such precision.  She’s got excellent technique overall, and you can hear that from track to track no matter what gear she’s in, but I’ll fully admit that it just makes it that much more special to hear her sing the songs of the season that resonate most with you, whichever those tracks might be for you.  For me, it’s “Oh Holy Night” – she sounds stellar here.

I think that one of the easiest songs to like on this album, for quality and content, is “Angels We Have Heard On High (Gloria).”  Not only is it one of the better Christmas tunes to begin with, but the spin that Marleena has put on it here will make your heart melt long before the snow does.  She’s chosen to sing this song with her two daughters, aged 11 and 14 respectively…and I can’t imagine she could be prouder of them in how this all came out in the end.  You regular readers know exactly what to expect outta me when I write a review…I call the hits, and I’m just as confident about calling the misses.  This is just a full-on homerun from start to finish as far as my ears are telling me.  If it was merely a case of having the kids come along for the ride, I’d be the first to tell you that – but it’s not like that at all…these two younger Barbers clearly have talent of their own, and together as a trio, they’ve got something truly magical on display throughout “Angels We Have Heard On High (Gloria).”  I have such fond memories of this song to begin with, having been raised religious long ago, this is one of those songs I can remember singing with my grandma in church way back when I used to go, when she was still alive.  Marleena and her wonderful daughters have conjured up one of my favorite memories of the season with this cover, so they get bonus points from me.  As for you, I feel like you’ll love this song every bit as much as I did.  The harmonies are spectacular in this tune…the way they sing “Gloria” together is seriously wonderful, and it’s paired with some of the best instrumentation you’ll find in any song on Once Upon A December.

Another solid display of fantastic musicianship on “Hanukkah’s Child” right afterwards as well, though I didn’t love the song nearly as much as I did the one before.  I dig the inclusive aspect of having it in the set-list…I suppose I just feel like the main hooks of the chorus in this track make it hard to believe it’ll hold up as strong as many of the others could potentially over time with the repetitive lyricism.  For myself personally, it’s the verses that make “Hanukkah’s Child” worth listening to…that’s where Marleena sounds downright mesmerizing and taps right into the fluidity of the vocal melody with ease.  No real fault of the performances when it comes right down to it, so that technically just makes my opinion one of personal preference and nothing more…and I guess I just feel like “Hanukkah’s Child” is written in a disproportionate way that puts more emphasis on the wrong part of the song.  It’s not a long song to begin with, but this feels like we spend much more time with the chorus than we do with the verses…which is pretty normal in a song, yes, but in this instance with the repetition & sparse lyrics that go with the main hooks, it ends up compounding the issue and feels like the scales aren’t balanced.

Barber has that…theatrical aspect to her, you know what I mean?  To be honest with ya, that’s another trait that those who choose to make holiday albums tend to have in common for the most part…you can hear the Drama Club in’em!  But hey…though I’d admit it’s not totally my thing when it comes to what I choose to listen to, I’ve still got mad respect for those that own their moments with confidence in doing what they love to do, and Marleena is a solid example of someone who has embraced their vision for how these songs would sound.  With “Purple Snowflakes,” you can practically see how this song would play out live onstage…probably a solo spotlight at first, before expanding further to reveal the splendor of “Purple Snowflakes” and a stunning scene surrounding the main star of the show as she sings.  I don’t know who exactly is responsible for the flute solo in this song, but it’s absolutely outta this world!  No joke folks…I wasn’t expecting a flute solo to begin with, and then to hear the insane level of skill in that moment was truly fantastic.  All-in-all, “Purple Snowflakes” had no real trouble winning me over by the time I went to write this review – I might even go as far as to say it’s one of the album’s best tunes when it comes right down to it.  Like when you consider how a complete song works in terms of having every aspect of it come together precisely the way it should…the music is magic, the vocals are feeling the moment, and everything sounds just as natural as intentional…that’s what it’s like to listen to this song.  It ticks all those boxes, and really has Marleena sounding like she’s thriving in her natural environment.

Did she go and cover “All I Want For Christmas,” you ask?  You bet she did.  The most inescapable song of the holiday season in the modern era, and Barber has chosen to add onto its hit count with another version?  In Canadian hockey terms, respectfully, that’s two minutes for roughing, ma’am!  Look…it’s a bulletproof song, that’s the objective reality…there’s a clear reason we hear Carey’s classic more than any other Christmas tune over the course of the season.  It’s the textbook definition of universal sound & appeal – and it’s one of those songs that even the people that claim not to like it, in fact, actually do.  Now…obviously it would take superhuman skills to cover Carey in a similar way to how Mariah sings it, and we all know that…but Barber found a way to get some of her best into this performance here and should be highly commended for that.  She didn’t go for the heights that Mariah reached for in her biggest notes, and instead she found a great way to do this her own jazzy-cabaret type of way.  Plus, it’s not like Marleena can’t bring it to the microphone when it’s called for – the big finish she puts into “All I Want For Christmas” speaks strongly on behalf of her being able to hit those huge notes when it counts.

Thinking about the future at the end of the album, “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?” has Marleena moving beyond Christmas in the last track on Once Upon A December.  I liked this inclusion into the set quite a bit…it’s another song that really has Barber sounding strong & in her element.  So, yes, that does imply that it again drifts towards a theatrical type of vibe, but the jazz surrounding her is as smooth as smooth can be, and a completely perfect fit.  The appearance of the trumpet in this tune was pure delight if you ask me.  By the time you reach it, which is like, some two-minutes & change into the song, you’ve already been enjoying listening to this last cut for a wide variety of valid reasons, and then the trumpet comes along to add the icing on the proverbial cake – it sounds amazing.  Marleena puts in one of her best performances without question throughout “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?” as well.  Totally balanced from start to finish, Barber sounds flawlessly steady for the finale of Once Upon A December, and exits this latest offering with one last victory before it’s all over.  So there you have it – that’s my take on Marleena Barber’s holiday record…it all came out so much better than I would have thought, given my previously explained stance on holiday tunes.  She sings with style and confidence, and she’s done a solid job on her mission to bring the holiday classics she loves into your homes and into your hearts.  Awwwwwwww!

Find out more about Marleena Barber from her official website at:  http://www.marleenabarber.com