Despite the haphazard nature of the project’s development, Guaraldi and co. delivered some very fine jazz music. “Christmas is Coming” opens with a rumbling bass line that pays homage to Guaraldi’s childhood love affair with boogie-woogie piano, with a brief “B” section that leans into the bossa and samba rhythms he spent much of his career developing. Guaraldi’s solo piano intro on “O Tannenbaum” is not only iconic, but a fine example of his unique harmonic concept, which then gives way to a lightly swinging interpretation by the trio with a piano solo that features many typical Guaraldi-isms. Of course, one of the record’s most memorable and enduring works is “Christmas Time is Here” – Guaraldi had always wished to pen a jazz standard, and he most certainly achieved that with this tune.