A digital EP assembled in 2017,
Berry Christmas contains four seasonal perennials
Chuck Berry recorded for Chess Records. "Run Rudolph Run" is the standard, covered by a ton of other rockers, but
Berry's take on
Charles Brown's "Merry Christmas Baby" receives a bunch of play, too, leaving "Spending Christmas" and "Christmas" as the collection's obscurities. Recorded in the mid-'60s and early '70s respectively, both are blues numbers redolent of their times -- "Spending Christmas" gives
Berry plenty of space to croon with a twinkle in his eye and "Christmas" is a funky and fanciful little number with the faintest hippie air -- and sound better when paired with other holiday tunes. All added up, it's a nifty little treat for the season. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine