SoundSpike's round-up of a very eclectic holiday concert season

Story by Phil Gallo
SoundSpike Editor at Large
Published November 9, 2010 04:29 AM

With the pumpkins, ghouls and goblins tucked away for another year, concert venues are looking straight ahead to Dec. 25, decking their halls with tra-la-las, silver bells and Santa songs.

The two holiday behemoths, Mannheim Steamroller

Also taking the divide and conquer route is Mannheim Steamroller, who start touring with two versions of the group Nov. 11 in Greeley, CO, and Gainesville, FL. They'll get in 83 shows by the time they wrap things up Dec. 30 in Macon, GA.

Fiddler Eileen Ivers will lead a holiday celebration across the U.S., performing Wren Day songs, American carols, and a jigging Bach in "An Nollaig: An Irish Christmas." She will team with local orchestras and community dancers and singers beginning Dec. 2 in Huntsville, AL, at the Von Braun Center. The 16-city tour wraps up Dec. 23 at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.

The Blind Boys of Alabama have a holiday show titled "Go Tell It On the Mountain" that starts its 10-city run on Dec. 3 at the McGee Theater in Wingate, NC. They take the show to New York City (Dec. 12, B.B. King Blues Club), San Francisco (Dec. 19, Davies Symphony Hall) and Los Angeles (Dec. 20, Walt Disney Concert Hall). Ruthie Foster opens the shows.

Aaron Neville takes a break from Neville Brothers shows in December to head out on the "Christmas with Aaron Neville and his Quintet Featuring Charles Neville" tour. He opens with a two-nighter at Dakota Jazz Club & Restaurant in Minneapolis (Nov. 30, Dec. 1), and will do 17 shows in 14 cities. He returns home to Louisiana to play the New Orleans House of Blues Dec. 10 and Baton Rouge's Shaw Center for the Arts Dec. 12. The tour closes Dec. 21 and 22 at New York City's City Winery.

The Manhattan Transfer has five holiday-themed concerts, bookended by shows Dec. 15 at the Palace Theater in Waterbury, CT, and Dec. 21 at Los Angeles' Walt Disney Concert Hall. The group will also perform Dec. 16 at Glenside, PA's Keswick Theatre, the 17th at Toronto's Koerner Hall and Dec. 19 at the Performing Arts Center in Lancaster, CA.

Kenny Rogers starts a 17-show "Christmas & Hits Tour" on Dec. 2 at RBC Theatre at the John Labatt Centre in London, Ontario. After four dates in Canada, Rogers makes a swing through the East Coast and Midwest that will take him to Morristown, NJ's Mayo Center for the Performing Arts on Dec. 9; Atlantic City, NJ's Trump Taj Mahal on Dec. 11; Mashantucket, CT's MGM Grand at Foxwoods on Dec. 12; and Detroit's Fox Theater on Dec. 16. The tour ends Dec. 22 at the Theatre at Westbury in Westbury, NY.

L.A. punk progenitors X -- with their original lineup of John Doe, Exene, Billy Zoom and D.J. Bonebrake -- will play four Christmas-themed shows in Southern California. Classic X-mas tunes come at the end of their shows, as they will be screening "X: The Unheard Music" and playing their debut album "Los Angeles" in its entirety. The X-mas shows are Dec. 15 at the West Hollywood House of Blues; Dec. 16 at the Majestic Theatre in Ventura; Dec 17 at House of Blues Anaheim; and Dec. 19 at the Belly Up Tavern in Solana Beach.

Two of the singers known for their work on the "Phil Spector Christmas Album" also have holiday shows lined up:

Ronnie Spector -- former wife of Phil Spector -- will perform five Christmas shows in the U.K. and then come home for the holidays to perform Dec 16 at the Strand Center for the Arts in Lakewood, NJ, and on Christmas Day at the Mohegun Sun in Uncasville, CT. In the meantime, the former lead singer of '60s girl group The Ronnettes is set to drop her latest album, "Ronnie's Best Christmas Ever," on Nov. 9.

Darlene Love, the other alumna of the original Spector's 1963 holiday set, Darlene Love recalls the glory of "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home")" on Dec. 19 at New York City's B.B. King Blues Club and Dec. 23 in Englewood, NJ, at the Bergen Performing Arts Center.

Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks will continue their annual "Holidaze in Hicksville" tradition, touring this year in support the album "Crazy for Christmas." Hicks's 11-city run starts the Saturday after Thanksgiving in Elmer NJ, and wraps up Dec. 15 in San Diego.

Point of Grace will start carolling Dec. 2 in Eden Prairie, MN, in support of the new Christmas release "Home For The Holidays." The band will do a dozen performances, mostly in churches, throughout the Midwest and South. Among the stops are Dec. 5 at the Macomb Center for Performing Arts in Clinton Township, MI; Dec. 11 at the Tuscarora Inn and Conference Center in Mt. Bethel, PA; and Dec. 17 at the Hippodrome Theatre in Baltimore. The tour closes Dec. 19 at the North Side Baptist Church in Greenwood, SC.

On the East Coast, the O'Jays have booked three shows to celebrate the release of "Christmas with the O'Jays." They are booked Nov. 19 at Newark Symphony Hall in New Jersey, the Brooklyn Academy of Music on Nov. 20 and the Star Plaza Theatre in Merrillville, IN on Nov. 27.

The Roches call their seasonal show "With a Holiday Twist," which they will perform Dec. 4 in Albany, NY, at the Center for the Performing Arts; Dec. 10 in Sellersville, PA at the Sellersville Theater; Dec. 17 in Alexandria, VA at the Birchmere; and Dec. 20 at New York's City Winery.

Conductor Andre Rieu kicks off the holiday leg of his North American tour on Nov. 24, with four sold-out concerts in Mexico City before hitting the U.S. on Nov. 29 at the Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, AZ. Rieu leads his 55-piece Johann Strauss Orchestra with singers Carmen Monarcha, Mirusia Louwerse, Kimmy Skota and the Platin Tenors on a three-week tour that includes performances in Las Vegas (Nov. 30); Los Angeles (Dec. 3); Seattle (Dec.6); Orlando, FL; and Toronto (Dec. 12).

Happy Holidays with Canadian Brass will visit seven cities in December, among them Shepherdstown, WV (Frank Center Theater) on the 9th; Appleton, WI (OuterEdge Stage) on the 18th and St. Louis (Powell Symphony Hall) on the 23rd.

Cirque du Soleil has created new holiday musical, "Cirque Dreams Holidaze," that starts Nov. 19 in Milwaukee, WI and plays Louisville, KY; Wabash, IN; Dayton, OH; New Brunswick, NJ; Cleveland, OH; and elsewhere before wrapping up at the Fox Theatre in St. Louis Dec. 21-29.

Several shows are one-time-only events.

Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland will be the host of the "CMA Country Christmas" that will be taped Nov. 11 at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville and will air Nov. 29 on ABC. Performers include Kellie Pickler, Sheryl Crow, Little Big Town, Martina McBride, Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts, Reba, LeAnn Rimes, Darius Rucker and, of course, Sugarland.

Paul Winter will hold his 31st annual Winter Solstice Celebration in New York City at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine Dec. 16-18.

And last but not least, will do her Christmas show at the First Presbyterian Church of Freehold, NJ, on Dec. 4.