Christmas EP, Aimee Mann (Superego)

Aimee finally came out of the Christmas closet with this brief 2005 collection I found on iTunes. It consists of fairly mellow covers of Joni Mitchell's "River," a song that fits her like an old shoe; the Mel Torme "Christmas Song" previously heard on the Q Division compilation; and last year's limited-availability cover of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," along with the instant classic from 2005's The Forgotten Arm, "I Was Thinking I Could Clean Up For Christmas." The latter features bright, funky rock band playing, cheerful melodies and a downer of a story about cleaning up and leaving a lover behind. Dark but warm, sort of like the dive bar around the corner from your apartment. (You have to get to the next and last song on Forgotten Arm to reach the somewhat happy ending.) The only thing missing is Aimee's duet with hubby Michael Penn, "Christmastime," from back in the mid-90s. The EP eventually vanished and isn't even listed at her website, although the Q Division collection remains available and "Have Yourself" was re-recorded for her eventual full holiday album One More Drifter in the Snow.