Deck the halls with holly and put on a festive record. The jingle bells of cash registers and the piped strains of shopping mall seasonal favourites Boney M does put the Grinch on the notion of cool Yule grooves. But Santa rewards those who have been very good and there really are some honest to gosh gems out there.

Perhaps the classiest of all holiday records is Vince Guaraldi’s A Charlie Brown Christmas (Fantasy), the soundtrack to a 1965 US TV show that featured Charles Schulz’s lovable characters. 

The album, which in recent years has been reissued on green, red and even snowflake-patterned vinyl, is also said to be the most influential jazz record of all time. Which, if you think about it, makes sense. ..