‘A Damn Good Show’: ‘Rockabilly Christmas’ at The Suffolk Effortlessly Merges Holiday Cheer and Boogie-Woogie

It’s hard to top rose-colored memories of Christmas, but step inside The Suffolk this holiday season for “Rockabilly Christmas,” and you’ll make a memory that rivals them all.

Set to begin at 8 p.m. on Friday, December 19, this annual celebration brings Jason D. Williams, along with local bands Gene Casey & the Lone Sharks and The Vendettas, to the stage for a night of blues, rock ’n’ roll, and impromptu jamming that’ll get you in the holiday spirit — and on the dance floor.

“It’s taken on a life of its own,” said Casey. “We generally sell out, and people talk all year long about last December or the coming one. There’s something special about the event — it’s not just one person’s influence. It’s not just because of Gene Casey & The Lone Sharks; it’s the time of year, the theater, the music, and the people.”

Jason D. Williams, a pianist, singer, and songwriter from Memphis, Tennessee, drives the high-energy atmosphere inside the venue. Influenced by his friend Jerry Lee Lewis, as well as Moon Mullican, Memphis Slim, and Al Jolson, Williams’s rock ’n’ roll spills into blues, soul, and jazz. On stage, he becomes fully immersed in the music, sometimes playing standing on the piano bench, sitting on the stage below the piano, or adding an unexpected flourish — all without sheet music.

“He’s a wild man,” Casey said. “He kind of starts where Jerry Lee Lewis left off … jumping on the piano. He doesn’t light the piano on fire — yet.”

Gene Casey & The Lone Sharks, dubbed “the house band of the Hamptons,” have been getting people on their feet with roots-drenched original music for decades. Their songs have appeared in TV shows and films including “Justified,” “Sons of Anarchy,” “The Tall Man,” “The Killing Season,” and Rob Reiner’s “Being Charlie.”

The Vendettas bring a mix of 1950s jukebox favorites and modern hits from artists like Bruce Springsteen, ensuring there’s something for every audience member.

“The shows are absolutely amazing,” Williams said of his fellow musicians. “Gene is one of my favorite guitar players, and I look up to him — not just because he’s 6-foot-6.”

At “Rockabilly Christmas,” it’s pure celebration. Twinkling lights decorate the theater for the season, but the focus isn’t just on Christmas music — it’s on creating a joyous, festive atmosphere through rock ’n’ roll, Casey said. The genre suits the season perfectly, evoking nostalgia from Elvis to Chuck Berry.

“There’s a good tradition of not just Christmas carols or standards, but rock ’n’ roll stuff,” Casey explained. “There’s an aspect of rock ’n’ roll that’s always connected to childhood. I don’t care if you’re 80 — when you listen to real rock ’n’ roll, you feel young for three minutes. And of course, Christmas is about that. It’s bringing back those memories.”

Williams recorded for RCA and Sun Records in the 1980s and 1990s and portrayed Jerry Lee Lewis’s hands in Jim McBride and Jack Baran’s “Great Balls of Fire.” What audiences see on stage is part of that rich musical history — and it’s a performance that won’t ever be replicated.

Describing himself as the “Jackson Pollock of piano playing,” Williams says, “The whole thing is just made up as we go. What the audience is hearing, I’m hearing for the first time, too. The truth of the matter is, I have no earthly idea what I’ll be playing. It’s so rootsy.”

By the time the concert arrives, he knows audiences have already heard plenty of Christmas music, so he makes sure what he plays is “different, original and new,” sometimes improvising one-of-a-kind Christmas songs that may never be heard again.

Despite the lack of a setlist, the artists have found a rare chemistry, performing together at The Suffolk for over a decade. Williams headlines, Gene Casey & The Lone Sharks join him on stage, and The Vendettas provide additional backup — a role they took on after the passing of act and soul vocalist Prentiss McNeil.

“It’s a damn good show,” Casey said. “The spirit is very loose and funny. It’s not a ponderous type of show — it’s definitely a celebration.”

Tickets, priced $35 to $65, are available at thesuffolk.org and are expected to sell out. The Suffolk is located at 118 East Main Street in Riverhead.