We all have touchstones that bring the simple spirit of Christmas to our harried, mall-besotted souls. For some, it's that first burst of multi-colored light when the last string is strung. For others, it could be a long-treasured card or the smell of baking cookies. For us, it's the music. Northwest jazz and blues singer Maia Santell and her backing band House Blend perform their annual holiday concert and dance Wednesday at Jazzbones. House Blend instrumentalists feature Ted Dortch on tenor saxophone, Jeff Ziontz on guitar, Ted Enderle on bass and Tim Malland on drums. The band's repertoire includes jazz, blues, swing, Latin, rhythm and blues and holiday favorites such as "Merry Christmas Baby," "Please Come Home For Christmas," "Santa Baby," Nancy Wilson's "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" and Mel Torme's holiday classic "The Christmas Song," to name a few. Skip the holiday songs that have snuck through the back door, drunk up all the rum, made a clumsy pass on pretty much everyone but the family dog, and are now holding court in the corner, seriously bringing down the party by talking about how much this season can suck, and drop in on Santell's up little tunes - hope, faith, charity, love and all that.

MAIA SANTELL HOLIDAY CONCERT, 7:30 p.m., Jazzbones, 2803 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, $8, 253.396.9169

See Also

South Sound Holiday Command Center

Calendar: Arts and Entertainment

Calendar: Music and Nightlife