Jazzing Up the Holidays: Singing Along with The Trolley Drops
By Peter Thomas with Julie Horner
The Trolley Drops play hokum blues and novelty tunes from the 20s and 30s and they’ll be heading to the Santa Cruz Mountains this holiday season to lead revelers in a sing-along show at Joe’s Bar on Thursday, December 19. Vocally rich, carefree, and infectiously fun, this good time dance music, often known as “jug band music,” blends the call and response of gospel with the drive of Delta blues and the raucous sounds of New Orleans Jazz. Led by Peter Thomas, who lives in Live Oak, the band features members who hail from Boulder Creek and Felton to Aptos.
And what is a “Trolley Drop?” Peter explained that one year he and his brother bought a stripped down 1927 Melbourne (Australia) W-2 street car from the San Jose History Museum in Kelly Park. They sawed it in half and Peter towed his half to property he owns in Mariposa. It became the centerpiece of their annual music camp and where band members settled on their motto, “jug till the last drop.” Hence, the “Trolley Drops.” Peter plays banjo uke and a hopped up ‘kanzoo’; Michael Beeson (the Professor) plays toy piano; Jay Bowyer on guitar; Caroleena on washboard; Tony DeVincentis on clarinet; (Captain) Ron Goodman on kazoo; Ti Lamb on trumpet; Greg Meyer on mandolin; Philip Rice on trombone; and Michele Whizin on bass.
Every December, for the last 10 years, Peter and various members of the band have performed a series of holiday ‘Xmas Spectacular’ shows, sharing songs they have written for the holiday season. At first, Peter said, it was just a friendly band challenge: Can we write a song for the holidays and get stinking rich like the guy who wrote ‘Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer’. Then they learned that the late Dan Hicks of the Hot Licks had a band in the Mill Valley area called “The Christmas Jug Band,” which wrote twisted holiday parodies and offbeat takes on otherwise ordinary fare. That was when the Trolley Drops Jug Band put their collective noses to the grindstone and started cranking out holiday hit after holiday hit, taking “standards” from folk, jazz, pop, and rock genres, keeping the melodies but replacing the lyrics with seasonally inspired interpretations. For example: Reindeers on the Rise sung to the melody of Creedence Clearwater’s Bad Moon Rising; Hey Mr. St. Nick to The Byrds’ Mr. Spaceman; and I Just Bought a Gift to the Beatles’ I Just Saw a Face.
Since traditional Christmas caroling has sort of become a thing of the past, Peter said, The Trolley Drops are hoping to fill in the gap by creating a whole new cannon of holiday songs that people can sing around the fire on Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Solstice eves. This year Peter and the band are performing six shows around the Santa Cruz area making it easy for all of you to join in the fun. Dress up in red and green and don your Santa hats or reindeer antlers because these are full-on holiday extravaganzas complete with songbooks so you can sing — and sip — right along.
Here’s where you can enjoy the holiday jug band show with The Trolley Drops:
- Thursday, December 5 | 5:45 – 7:30. Pono Hawaiian Grill, 120 Union St., Santa Cruz
- Friday, December 6 | 5:30 – 8:30. Stockwell Cellars, 1100 Fair Ave., Santa Cruz
- Saturday, December 7 | 6:00 – 8:00. Steel Bonnet Brewing, 20 Victor Square, Scotts Valley
- Saturday, December 14 | 5:30 – 7:30. Discretion Brewing, 2703 41st Ave., Soquel
- Sunday Dec 15 | 1:00 – 2:00. Look: A Holiday Crafts Show at 5221 Coast Rd., Davenport
- Wednesday, December 18 | 5:30 – 7:30. Ukulele Club of Santa Cruz, VFW 2259 7th Ave., Santa Cruz
- Thursday, December 19 | 7:30 – 10:30. Joe’s Bar, 13118 Highway 9, Boulder Creek
The Trolley Drops also host a lively sing- and play-along session on the first Thursday of the month at Pono Hawaiian Grill in downtown Santa Cruz. Follow the band: peter@ukuleleclubofsantacruz.com | FB @thetrolleydrops
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Photos contributed
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