Merry Christmas from Doc Severinsen and the Tonight Show Orchestra

by Stephen Thomas ErlewineLike Doc himself, Merry Christmas from Doc Severinsen and the Tonight Show Orchestra is a brassy, stylish and shamelessly enjoyable album. Severinsen never takes risks -- the swaggering arrangements will be familiar to anyone who watched Johnny Carson's Tonight Show, and all the songs are staples -- but he's made an entertaining album. He's not alone on this one either -- the L.A. Children's Chorus, the Philharmonic Strings and the Desert Bells help out on individual tracks. When all is said and done, there might not be much unexpected here, but it's all quite fun.