Kevin Dozier

Christmas Eve
The Green Room 42, NYC, December 17, 2019
Reviewed by Bart Greenberg

The soft-spoken charmer Kevin Dozier returned to the New York cabaret scene to celebrate the release of his new holiday-themed CD, Christmas Eve. A collection of both traditional carols and more recent works, it offers up a lovely balance of material from which the evening’s song list was chosen. Several tracks from the disc were used, with Dozier singing live to the pre-recordings, and music director Alex Rybeck supplementing his own piano playing on the album. These adjustments helped to retain the “liveness” of the evening, often lost with the use of electronic audio.

Not that the Dozier presence seems to emanate from anywhere but from within his own generous personality. His sweet tenor with just a hint of attractive gravel inhabits classic material as “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear,” offered partially a cappella, and “Christmas Bells Are Ringing,” delivered with an innocence the makes the song sound fresh. But he is also capable of projecting a bittersweet mood for the title track of the album, written by Rybeck and the late Carol Hall.

Rybeck certainly was all over the music program, as accompanist, occasional vocalist, and strong presence in his own right. Joined by the gifted guest star, guitarist Sean Harkness, the three made for a potent trio, working in various combinations from a united offering of “Angels We Have Heard on High” that enthralled in its simplicity to a jazzy “There’s No Place Like Home” for voice and guitar. Harkness, on his own, offered up his “favorite all-purpose nondenominational holiday song “My Favorite Things,” shifting through a variety of styles and moods.

Dozier remained at the center of his show, bringing a sweet generosity to “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!,” a wondering soul to “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day,” and a charming desire in “My Grown-Up Christmas Wish” (David Foster/Linda Thompson-Jenner).