Rosie Thomas: A Very Rosie Christmas

A Very Rosie Christmas is a pleasant batch of jazz-pop Christmas songs that ranges from “O Come O Emmanuel” to “Christmas Time Is Here” to Joni Mitchell’s “River”. Thomas’ work often draws from a vein of Jonathan Richmanesque, childlike wonder, with observations finished in a gentle coat of irony — especially when her comedic alter-ego Shelia makes an appearance, as she briefly does on this album. Still, that irony disappears on a few tracks, and it’s a bit disorienting because without that additional layer the singer is merely earnest. This is a brave move for an artist so closely associated with indie rock, and a welcome one in fact, so long as the cloying corners of “Silent Night” are avoided. If you’re looking for a record of ironic Christmas songs sans the irony this year, A Very Rosie Christmas should satisfy.