jschlatt – Santa Claus Is Coming to Town Review

Welcome back, novelty songs from YouTubers. Not exactly Diggy Diggy Hole levels of nostalgia, but the return of any subscriber millionaire to the recording studio is bound to be interesting. These creatives have raised the bar. The slick production and flash endeavours of KSI and Logan Paul are but dribbles in the spit bucket of culture. Popularity and presentation are the same, but skill and talent, come to few. Jschlatt, the YouTuber much loved by an audience of ardent fans, has finally conceded. An artificial intelligence cover of a My Way cover has sparked a fire and we are all the better for it after he announced A Very 1999 Christmas. His collection of covers has no release date but we can hope for a pre-Christmas blowout. Lead single Santa Claus is Coming to Town has a genuine heart to it – and a remarkable set of pipes behind it.  

Where jschlatt may be playing up a character on-screen, the vocal range and timbre of his crooner-like cover are remarkable. As limited as the changes are to the instrumental sections it is probably best not to meddle with the classics too much. They are classics for a reason and leaving the light swing and tempo which benefitted Sinatra to Michael Bublé is well thought out. Shockingly enough, Schlatt has quite the voice. His incessant and often hilarious yelling in prime-time YouTube comedy is replaced by a dominant, warm vocal range. Bublé is an apt comparison – the monotone delivery but sparkly charm has a Seth MacFarlane stun to it. Schlatt is full of thunderbolt-like work, out-of-the-blue projects which strike a chord not because of their novelty but because of the commitment of the man behind it. Santa Claus is Coming to Town is such an incident.  

Any great artist must make a cover their own and for Schlatt this means some slight elongations, a few choice changes for the lyrical depths of a classic Christmas tune. They work because he knows the strengths and weaknesses of his voice, intimately so which remains a surprise after a few listens. A light snap to the deep and warm vocal tone taken, a few beats added to the “…goodness sake,” before the swing of brass and trumpet work is brilliant. Santa Claus is Coming to Town is effective in the hands of any musician but there must be some appreciation taken for the risk on this Schlatt cover because he ties himself so closely to the traditional crooner tone. What a remarkable choice it is, though, and it far exceeds the contemporary attempts at this J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie-written song.

From the tuxedo-clad grin to the minimalist cover harking back to those days of traditional Christmas covers, what could be seen as a novelty on the surface turns into a rich understanding of the song. Schlatt has an unexpected, quality voice at hand and uses it well. A song defined by the lower tones of Bublé is given another run-through with a youthful spin, a dedication to the familial heart and charm, the whimsy of Christmas cherished by children as a last chance for Santa Claus to take note of good deeds. What was birthed as an inside joke among fans has spurned into something far greater, snowballing into what could be a festive album of real quality. If the rest of the songs are as enjoyably classic as Santa Claus is Coming to Town, Schlatt is certainly onto something.