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Based in the Cayman Islands, Hi Tide is up to its old tricks (see "A Cayman Christmas," also reviewed on this site), making very fun island pop. "Merry Christmas" is the second holiday offering from this duo, Shane Allenger (lead, background vocals, and percussion) and Sean Hennings (acoustic guitar, bass, percussion and background vocals), and the album is a clear continuation of the island magic flowing from the first.

Perhaps the biggest change from the first album is something small--the sound of little kids' voices in "Do You Hear What I Hear?" In addition, on this second effort Hi Tide has invited other friends to provide bass (Lammie) and violins (Kate Copley) to enrich the instrumentation. Copley also applies some nice background vocals in two numbers.

"Merry Christmas" has ten tracks of classic holiday standards. The tone is upbeat with swingin' Caribbean sensibilities. Again, Allenger's rich tenor voice is the star, and he really struts his stuff on songs like "Silver Bells," "The First Noel," and Roger Miller's "Old Toy Trains." Hi Tide sometimes offers up the unexpected. For example, tunes like "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and "Rocking Around the Christmas Tree" have a distinctly country flavor, making me imagine the Hi Tide guys in cowboy gear. Hi Tide really floats my boat when the island rhythms flow the strongest; for that reason, my gold stars go to "Oh Come, Oh Come Emmanuel," "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" and "Do You Hear What I Hear?".

--Carol Swanson
(Reviewed in 2004)

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From the liner notes:

Musicians:

Shane Allenger: lead, background vocals, and percussion
Sean Hennings: acoustic guitar, bass, percussion and background vocals

Special guests:

Lammie: bass on "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"
Kate Copley: violins on "Rockin' Around," "Emmanuel," and "Here Comes Santa Claus"; background vocals on "Here Comes Santa" and "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"
Alex Hennings: Piano on "Old Toy Trains"
Kids voices on "Do You Hear What I Hear?": Ashley Borde, Alicia Boyd, Alex Hennings, William Jackson, Juliana Creary, Kayla Wood, Jerrica Wood, Jerdana Wood

From the website:

Hi-Tide is the Cayman Islands first contemporary Pop group. There is a hint of the islands in their music, but it is always cleverly mixed in with the sounds of Rock, Blues, Soul, Funk, and even the occasional Country lick or phrase. Founding members Shane Allenger and Sean Hennings have been writing and playing together in bands since 1984.

Hi Tide

Merry Christmas

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Track List