Tunes For The Season
One of the best things about Christmas is the music. It puts us in the holiday mood, triggers memories of Christmases gone by, and may even inspire us to sing along.
This Christmas season there aren’t any blockbuster holiday releases to compare with last year’s “Miracles: A Christmas Album” by Kenny G, which sold 5 million copies (and will probably be the biggest-selling seasonal disc again this year).
But there are a lot of interesting new Christmas albums, highlighted by a collection of mostly new songs from R&B superstar Luther Vandross; a new compilation of funky carols from the legendary James Brown; a country Christmas album of mostly original songs by Clint Black; rocking country carols from the fun-loving Tractors; a stellar collection of blues carols from the Bullseye label, and a hard-rocking and funny EP from a band of Northwest rock stars calling themselves the Screaming Santas.
Of course, you’ll find many more than these new releases in the Christmas section of your favorite record store, because all the albums from Christmases past are being offered again, including dozens of compilations.
Here’s a selected list of new Christmas pop-music recordings, starting with the Top Five:
1. “This Is Christmas,” Luther Vandross (Epic/LV): The soulful crooner has perhaps the Christmas album of the year, with excellent original tunes, fine covers and an overall feeling of joy and celebration. A couple of songs, both ballads, may become holiday staples - “Every Year, Every Christmas” and “A Kiss for Christmas.”
2. “James Brown’s Funky Christmas,” James Brown (Polydor): A compilation of the Godfather of Soul’s Christmas songs through the years, including “Santa Claus Go Straight to the Ghetto,” “Let’s Make Christmas Mean Something This Year” and “Go Power at Christmas Time.” By turns weird, wonderful and fascinating.
3. “Bullseye Blues Christmas” (Bullseye Blues/Rounder Records): A rousing collection of Christmas blues, including Charles Brown’s timeless classics “Merry Christmas Baby” and “Please Come Home for Christmas,” as well as six new tunes. The artists are all first-rate, including Lowell Fulson, Johnny Otis, Champion Jack Dupree, the Persuasions and Luther “Guitar Junior” Johnson.
4. “Looking for Christmas,” Clint Black (RCA): The country star looks at the meaning of Christmas with 10 original, eclectic compositions - some jazzy, some rock, some rollicking country. A serious effort that’s quite impressive.
5. “Superstar Greetings: A Superstar Christmas” (Capitol): The longtime major label plunders its vaults for holiday treasures, finding gems from John and Yoko, Paul McCartney, the Beach Boys, Willie Nelson, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, Nat King Cole and others.
Other new releases
“A Country Christmas, Volume 5” (RCA): RCA’s annual presentation of seasonal music by its artists includes mostly traditional carols this year, some newly recorded, others taken from previous releases. You’ll hear Aaron Tippin, John Anderson, Lorrie Morgan and Clint Black. Included is that dubious classic, “Jingle Bells” by the Singing Dogs.
“An All-4-One Christmas,” All-4One (Atlantic): The young vocal quartet sings traditional carols and one new song, displaying finely tuned harmonies and lots of joy and energy.
“A Winter Garden: Five Songs for the Season,” Loreena McKennitt (Warner Bros.): The singersongwriter who evokes medieval times in her rich folk music sings some familiar (“God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen,” “Good King Wenceslas”) and lesser-known (“Coventry Carol”) Christmas and winter carols, as well as traditional English lyrics set to new music (“Seeds of Love”).
“Billboard’s Top Christmas Hymns” (Rhino): Ten traditional carols or devotional tunes from the late 1950s to the mid-‘60s, mostly sung by choirs and popular enough to have made Billboard’s singles list.
“Celtic Christmas” (Windham Hill): Seasonal music from Windham Hill’s Celtic artists, including Luka Bloom, Nightnoise, Altan, Loreena McKennitt and Liam O’Flynn.
“Christmas,” Anthony Arizaga (Thunderbird): Familiar, traditional Christmas carols played on flamenco guitar.
“Christmas at the Brooklyn Tabernacle,” the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir and Singers, featuring the London Studio Orchestra (Warner Alliance): Orchestral, rather formal gospel Christmas music, with some traditional carols but mostly new compositions (including a reggae tune), all beautifully performed.
“Christmas Blessings: The Narada Christmas Collection, Volume 3” (Narada): The New Age label showcases its stars performing mostly familiar carols. Among the artists are the Northwest’s Nancy Rumbel and Eric Tingstad.
“Christmas In the Aire,” Mannheim Steamroller (American Grammaphone): Chip Davis’ group has established itself as a Christmastime tradition, with its catalog of Christmas albums selling in huge numbers worldwide every year. This new release is much like the previous ones - big, sweeping, electronic keyboard-centered seasonal music, impressively recorded, but dry and mechanical. Strictly background music.
“Christmas Is Jesus,” Bryan Duncan (Myrrh): The contemporary Christian performer sings mostly traditional carols, plus some new original songs.
“Contemporary Christmas Eve,” The Oak Ridge Boys (Capitol): The vocal group’s third Christmas album, but the first in a decade, with several new songs and some traditional ones.
“Have Yourself a Tractors Christmas,” the Tractors (Arista): The talented, fun-loving, gritty-edged country band has a go at holiday classics, and creates some new songs for the season. The rocking “Jingle My Bells” is great fun and could become a holiday hit.
“Ho! Ho! Hoey,” Gary Hoey (Surfdog/Zoo): The intense rock guitarist offers a variety of holiday instrumentals, including an “Auld Lang Syne” that will enliven any New Year’s Eve party.
“Holidays In Dementia” (Rhino): Dr. Demento selects the wackiest Christmas songs of all time, including classics from Spike Jones and Ray Stevens.
“Mother & Child: A Christmas Celebration of Motherhood” (Gai Saber): A wealth of artists, including Martina McBride, Suzy Bogguss, Amy Grant and Olivia Newton-John, interpret mostly obscure carols relating to the mother and child relationship.
“Must Be Santa! The Rounder Christmas Album” (Rounder): The eclectic label rounds up Christmas music from its artists, including David Grisman, NRBQ, Charles Brown (with a brilliant “Blue Holiday”), George Thorogood, Mary Wells, John Fahey and Riders in the Sky. The variety is almost too much, with clashing styles.
“Nashboro Nativity: Christmas with the Gospel Keynotes featuring Special Guests,” in two volumes (Nashboro): Christmas songs in traditional black gospel style from a talented, energetic choir.
“O Holy Night,” John Berry (Capitol): The sweet-voiced country star’s first Christmas album features holiday standards, highlighted by “The Christmas Song.”
“Punk Rock Xmas” (Rhino): Have a hard-core Christmas with 18 punk carols, including the Ramones’ “Merry Christmas (I Don’t Wanna Fight Tonight)” and the Damned’s “There Ain’t No Sanity Claus.”
“Road to Joy,” Freeway Philharmonic (Sheffield Lab): Traditional carols performed by a unique, string-based quartet that includes guitar and “drumcussion.” Different and inventive, this disc should make for lively party music.
“Santamental Journey” (Rhino): A collection of holiday standards by stars of the pop-vocal era, including Perry Como, Doris Day and Rosemary Clooney.
“The Music of Christmas,” Steven Curtis Chapman (Sparrow): The very popular contemporary Christian singer interprets traditional songs and offers some originals.
“Trim the Tree!,” the Screaming Santas (Blue Rose): Seattle rock stars - Jonathan Auer of the Posies, Braden Blake of Super Deluxe, Mike Musburger of Love Battery and Rick Roberts of Peach - do Christmas, Seattle style, with three wild, rocking Christmas tunes (including one with the theme, “Let’s get high for Christmas”) and an additional cut that consists of nothing but the sounds of burning yule logs.
“What Christmas Really Means,” Peter McCann (RCA): A folk/ country artist in the James Taylor vein with original songs stressing the spiritual meaning of Christmas.
“You Sleigh Me: Twelve Songs from Twelve Atlantic Artists for the Twelve Days of Christmas” (Atlantic): Atlantic showcases its relatively new stars, including Collective Soul, Juliana Hatfield, Jill Sobule, Victoria Williams, Tori Amos and Everything But the Girl.
“Yule Of Yore: TV Land Tunes from Christmas Past” (Nick at Night): Culled from old TV shows, with performances by the Cartwrights (Ben, Hoss & Little Joe), Mike Douglas, John Davidson, Arthur Godfrey, Slim Whitman, Jim Nabors, Jimmy Dean and others. Basically a curiosity.