Alright, as I promised yesterday, I will discuss a few of the selections from the Now That's What I Call Christmas! CD Collection today. In the following paragraphs, I will provide commentary on the 36 songs on the original volume of this series.
CDs & Commentary*:
Now That's What I Call Christmas! (Disc One)-- Wow! This disc is loaded to the gills (or would that be grooves?) with great classic holiday tunes. The opening track is Nat King Cole's delightful version of "The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You)" and the closer is Bing Crosby & David Bowie's duet, "Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth." (I discussed this highly unique medley last year. The former tune is one of my fave traditional carols, and the latter song is absolutely amazing.) In between, listeners are treated to the seasonal stylings of the likes of Elvis ("Blue Christmas," of course) and those of Rat Pack members; for example, Sinatra croons "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," and Dean Martin declares "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!". In addition, recording artists from Christmases past, including: Tony Bennett ("Winter Wonderland"), Ella Fitzgerald ("Sleigh Ride"), Perry Como (("There's No Place Like) Home for the Holidays"), Johnny Mathis ("The Most Wonderful Time of the Year"), Burl Ives ("A Holly Jolly Christmas"), Gene Autry ("Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer"), Elmo & Patsy ("Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer"), Brenda Lee ("Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree"), Bobby Helms ("Jingle Bell Rock"), and The Beach Boys ("Little Saint Nick")-- will bring a smile to your face, bring back happy memories, entertain your ears, and warm your heart. A couple tracks to skip, though, are country singer Kathy Mattea's "Christmas Collage" (downright grating; I've heard better versions of the collage's elements, especially "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen," "O Come, O Come Emanuel," and "We Three Kings," elsewhere) and the Carpenters' "Merry Christmas Darling" (depressing-- Who needs that around Christmas?!). Overall, this disc is well worth your while.
Now... ! (Disc 2)-- This CD is very eclectic, to say the least. To begin, there's some socially conscious stuff on here, particularly my all-time fave non-traditional Christmas anthem: "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)," by John & Yoko and the Plastic Ono Band w/the Harlem Community Choir. Of course, I've discussed this song-- as well as the primary artist-- here quite extensively. Its unfortunate timeliness cannot be overstated. Speaking of socially conscious Christmas songs, this disc also features Band Aid's (a collection of prominent 80s artists performing on behalf of Africa-- remember "We Are the World"?) "Do They Know It's Christmas?". Then, there's a lot of fun stuff by rock 'n' roll royalty; for instance, Bruce (a.k.a. The Boss) Springsteen performs "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" live with his E-Street Band, and John's Fab Four bandmate-- Sir Paul McCartney-- sings the reggae-tinged "Wonderful Christmastime"-- a tune Macca released in the 70s with Wings. Honestly, I usually end up skipping over a lot of the tracks on this disc, like Michael Bolton's (Dork Alert!) "Our Love Is Like a Holiday," Gloria Estefan's (sorry, can't go there) "Love on Lay Away," and Celine Dion's (don't even get me started!) "Don't Save It All for Christmas Day." Next, there's a bit of a rather pleasant jazzy influence in this collection, courtesy of Harry Connick, Jr. (the fun, Southern-fried "(It Must Have Been Ol') Santa Claus") and Diana Krall ("Jingle Bells"). In addition, a couple tracks are old-school holiday instrumentals. Manheim Steamroller supplies an admirable version of "Away In a Manger"-- another one of my fave traditional carols, and Ottmar Liebert does a decent "Deck the Halls." (Couldn't they have at least included something by the Transiberian Orchestra?) One thing I like about this CD is its nod to classic Motown in the form The Isley Brothers' (featuring Ronald Isley) rendition of a song called "Special Gift." Actually, a lot of the songs appeal to younger listeners. These include: Joe's "This Christmas"-- which I can't assess because I haven't heard it, The Big Yard Family's (featuring Shaggy) "All We Need Is Love (Christmas in the Yard" (fun!), Britney Spears' "My Only Wish (This Year)" (have to admit, surprisingly half-way okay), and *NSYNC's "You Don't Have to Be Alone (on Christmas)" (don't even bother; Justin Timberlake's SNL musical comedy vignette "D--- in a Box" is way better than this). Finally, you're treated to two R&B versions of traditional carols. First, the late Luther Vandross sings a beautiful version of "O Come All Ye Faithful." Secondly, Boyz II Men harmonizes a sure-to-be-a-classic "Silent Night." (Incidentally, I also love these two carols.) Despite some lackluster and not-so-great tracks, this CD is basically enjoyable.
So, that concludes my broadcast for Tues., Dec. 22, 2009. For tomorrow's edition of The Ashleyverse Show, I will discuss the tracklist for Now That's What I Call Christmas, Vol. 2. Stay tuned and peace out!
*Songs are grouped according to genre/recording date/category, not by order on CDs' tracklists.
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