LYNN — Christmas is a holiday where most of us spend lots of time reflecting on years passed.
We do our best to preserve cherished family traditions. Some of us still spend one night each holiday season light-peeping, the way some go north every fall to see foliage.
Of course some of us still gather ’round by the fireplace on cold, dark evenings and play or sing Christmas songs with the family.
That was the vibe The Tenors delivered Thursday night at Lynn City Hall Auditorium. The concert was a night to reflect on when Christmas was its most magical, our childhood. The three young Canadian men wowed a near-capacity crowd with songs from their new album and traditional carols.
The Tenors are Victor Micallef, who was the one rocking the derby for most of the night, Fraser Walters and Clifton Murray. Backed by a five-piece band, they floated seamlessly between classics such as “O Come All Ye Faithful,” and “The Little Drummer Boy” to some of their own material. They also featured unusual versions of traditional songs, such as when “I Saw Three Ships” morphed into the Beatles’ “Norwegian Wood,” a coupling nobody could have expected.
The band that accompanied the three singers stepped out from the background twice. Once, it joined the tenors in an a capella rendition of “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen,” a departure from most of the other material, which was heavily and intricately produced and orchestrated.
There was a jazzy version of Vince Guaraldi’s “Linus and Lucy,” more popularly known as the “Charlie Brown song.”
There were some poignant moments. “Mary Did You Know,” was one. And the original “Santa’s Letter,” which contained, as its chorus, the words to the old Coca-Cola jingle, “I’d Like To Teach the World to Sing.” A nice reminder of the season’s meaning.
While Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” is not a Christmas song, it was still a highlight. The three performed it beautifully.
As they did with “O, Holy Night,” where they sounded like Josh Groban Times Three, which is Nirvana times three, if you’re a Groban fan.
The Tenors are all about wholesome family entertainment. They want to entertain, and that’s exactly what they did to the audience at City Hall.
It was a reminder about what Christmas was like 50 years ago, when times were less complicated and things were more easily defined.
Steve Krause can be reached at [email protected].
