Album Notes

Allegedly recorded on a cold and blustery winter’s night by an Ensemble of Lonesome Fellas at a soup kitchen somewhere near the North Pole, “Homeless for the Holidaze” celebrates the Christmas season with a bit of satire and a big fat tongue planted firmly in cheek. Kicking off with some word up from the streets of Seattle, the opening number fades into a nostalgic rendition of “Home for the Holidays” that sets the stage for the wild sleigh ride to come. Next on the journey is “The Stripper’s Holiday,” a truly unique version of The Stripper by David Rose dressed up with a large medley of yuletide melodies. From there the rest of the collection includes more original arrangements of Christmas classics mixed in with a number of surprises, such as “Jesus Super Freak” and “Carol of the Tubular Bells” a medley of the well known folk song with the theme from The Exorcist. “(You’re A Mean One) Mr. Grinch” features a growling baritone sax and a “Whoville Chorus” bridge set on the streets of New Orleans. The campy “Holly Jolly Christmas/Jingle Bell Rock” medley sung by “Elfish Presley” and his elves shouldn’t be overlooked either.

The Ensemble of Lonesome Fellas, affectionately known as ELF was assembled with intent of creating a contemporary sound infused with a strong flavor of old school R&B, funk and even a hint of big band swing or rock when needed. In order to achieve this feat, the players relied heavily on the use of vintage gear for pretty much all of the tracking. Membership to ELF boasts some of Seattle’s top notch players with Ken French on drums, Jim Freeman on bass, Doug Zangar on guitar, Sandy Carter on pedal steel, Paul Sherman on organ, Craig Flory on saxophones and Mark Bentz on trumpet. More than 30 special guests were invited to join the party including local blues legend Randy Oxford on trombone, Ted Burik on stand up bass, and the Total Experience Gospel Choir and Seattle Men;s Chorus on vocals just to name a few.

Keeping with the Christmas spirit, it is important to note that 25% of the net proceeds from the recording are being dedicated to programs that benefit the homeless in the greater Seattle metropolitan area.