Jazz to Enjoy in Winter: Not Just Christmas Songs—Timeless Classics and Performances [2025]

You Must Believe In SpringBill Evans

Bill Evans – You Must Believe In Spring (Official Audio)

Winter is cold and a difficult season to live through, so I imagine many people don’t like it very much.

There are also those who are currently suffering in the very midst of winter in their lives.

This song, which expresses the determination to keep going while believing that warm spring will come, overflows with the anticipation of the spring that will eventually arrive.

What’s more, although the melody and chord progression of this piece by the master Michel Legrand sound very natural at first listen, it is actually quite a complex composition.

Someday My Prince Will ComeBill Evans

Someday My Prince Will Come

Bill Evans, a composer who achieved worldwide popularity with jazz that incorporated the musicality of Impressionism, such as Debussy and Ravel.

For anyone who has dabbled even a little in jazz, he’s a familiar name.

This piece, “Someday My Prince Will Come,” is used as an insert song in Disney’s film Snow White, and is known in Japan by the title “Itsuka Ōjisama ga.” While the original has a fantastical atmosphere, this rendition stands out for its jazzy, warm, and cheerful mood.

Exactly Like YouNat King Cole

Exactly Like You

When winter comes, don’t you start yearning for warm moments with family and loved ones? This song is perfect for that feeling—it’s about realizing, “This is the person I’ve been looking for.” The lyrics also convey a sense of familial love, suggesting that the kind of person Mom talked about is exactly someone like you, evoking the bonds of family.

Nat King Cole’s warm voice is something we miss as the weather turns cold, isn’t it? This track stylishly breaks away from the original melody and delivers a sophisticated performance.

Ascenseur pour l’échafaudMiles Davis

MILES DAVIS – Ascenseur pour l’échafaud

The improvised music created for the film “Elevator to the Gallows” is a masterpiece that showcases Miles Davis’s talent to the fullest.

The trumpet’s wistful tone brilliantly captures the film’s tension and sense of tragedy.

Recorded in just two days at a Paris studio in December 1957, this work became an important page in jazz history.

Produced using the innovative method of freely improvising to the film’s scenes, it radiates a unique allure that foreshadows the later shift toward modal jazz.

It’s a perfect record for a winter night when you want to sink into music at a relaxed pace.

Like It IsYusef Lateef

Like It Is (Remastered)

Yusef Lateef was an artist whose original musicality had a major impact on contemporary jazz.

While primarily a tenor saxophonist and flautist, he also actively used distinctive instruments that were very rare in jazz at the time—such as the oboe, bassoon, and bamboo flute.

His individuality is fully on display in Like It Is as well, resulting in an overall African-inflected sound.

It’s the perfect kind of jazz to help you get through the cold winter.

Love To Keep Me WarmLaufey & dodie

Laufey & dodie – Love To Keep Me Warm (Official Lyric Video)

Icelandic singer-songwriter Laufey collaborated with British singer-songwriter dodie (Dodie Clark) on the song “Love To Keep Me Warm.” It’s a light, pleasant track with romantic lyrics that depict feeling a partner’s warmth in the cold of winter.

Listening to it might even make the winter chill feel like something good.

Also noteworthy is how seasonal events like Christmas and New Year’s are used as memorable imagery in the song.

Cinema ParadisoCharlie Haden & Pat Metheny

Haden / Metheny – Cinema Paradiso

For those who want to listen to a touchingly melancholic jazz that matches the winter atmosphere, I recommend Cinema Paradiso.

This piece is a collaboration between jazz bassist Charlie Haden and guitarist Pat Metheny, the leader of the renowned jazz fusion outfit the Pat Metheny Group.

Despite its very simple instrumentation—classical guitar and double bass—it’s crafted into a deeply flavorful track.