When Gordon Goodwins 18-piece big-band combo tackles the Christmas canon, it not only makes for dazzling holiday listening—their complex arrangements and masterful performances manage to transcend the songs seasonal associations altogether. Goodwins A-list session players offer a sassy take on Eartha Kitts Santa Baby and a swaggering, Latin-tinged version of A Christmas Carol. Scatting guest singers Take 6 enliven Do You Hear What I Hear, and this Little Drummer Boy has more in common with Gene Krupa than it does with the usual pa-rum-pum-pum-pum.