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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Seasonal CD offerings range from Boyle to The Rat Pack

Associated Press

The annual avalanche of seasonal CDs is again upon us, and like snowflakes, no two are exactly alike.

Among the offerings:

Mariah Carey, “Merry Christmas II You” (Island Def Jam)

Carey insists that Christmas is her favorite time of year, and it shows on “Merry Christmas II You,” her second holiday album.

It’s a mix of classics, such as “O Little Town of Bethlehem” and “O Holy Night,” and newer tunes, including the first single, “Oh Santa!”

“Santa is going to come and make you mine this Christmas,” Carey playfully croons in the fun-filled track, which she wrote with her longtime collaborator, producer Jermaine Dupri.

In one of the more touching moments on the album, Carey teams up with her mother, opera singer Patricia Carey, who provides the chorus on “O Come All Ye Faithful.”

Carey does hit a sour note toward the end with the sappy “One Child” but redeems herself with a new recording of “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” from her 1994 album “Merry Christmas,” which has become a modern holiday classic.

– Alicia Quarles Susan Boyle, “The Gift” (Columbia)

Like a lot of presents received during the holidays, Boyle’s “The Gift” doesn’t live up to expectations.

On her second album, the “Britain’s Got Talent” sensation offers up a selection of holiday classics plus a few others, including Leonard Cohen’s now-ubiquitous “Hallelujah” and the puzzling selection of Crowded House’s “Don’t Dream It’s Over.”

But the choice of music isn’t the problem here; surprisingly, it’s Boyle’s voice. While she became a YouTube sensation for her heavenly but powerful vocals, here she sounds like a timid child, cooing shakily and rarely reaching her full potential.

The arrangements don’t help her out, sounding like dreary background music. You’ll need a pick-me-up after listening to this all the way through.

– Nekesa Mumbi Moody

Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., “Christmas With The Rat Pack” (Capitol/EMI)

You can spend a cool Yule with the Rat Pack in their prime on this collection chosen from ’50s and ’60s holiday recordings by Frank, Dino and Sammy.

Sinatra is more crooning choirboy than world-weary bad boy on sacred carols such as “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” as well as secular songs like his own rarely heard “Mistletoe and Holly.”

Martin’s relaxed, slightly suggestive vocal stylings are well suited for “Let It Snow!” and “Winter Wonderland,” and he’s surprisingly sensitive on a tender medley of “Peace On Earth/Silent Night.”

Davis performs the obscure “Christmas Time All Over The World” with a children’s choir singing holiday greetings in languages from Armenian to Norwegian, adds the rare introductory verse to Mel Torme’s “The Christmas Song” and romps through a jazzy, up-tempo arrangement of “Jingle Bells” punctuated with brassy big-band bursts.

This is a joyful album – Sinatra even got permission to change the lyrics to give a more upbeat ending to “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” – that’s a pleasant way to ring-a-ding in the holiday season.

– Charles J. Gans

“Now That’s What I Call Christmas 4” (EMI)

You get what you would expect on the fourth installment of the “Now That’s What I Call Music” holiday recordings: a pop-centric variety of Christmas music performed by today’s hottest acts.

This version comes with two discs. The first set is iTunes-friendly, from Lady Gaga singing “Christmas Tree” to Rihanna’s rendition of “A Child Is Born.”

There’s also a bonus CD with a collection of artists that might have contributed to “Now That’s What I Call Music: The 1950s Edition,” including Johnny Mathis, Elvis Presley and Bing Crosby.

– Alicia Rancilio

Annie Lennox, “A Christmas Cornucopia” (Decca)

Lennox proves herself a pro at mixing old and new world sounds on her first holiday album, which features a combination of English and French classics along with an original song.

She traveled to Cape Town, South Africa to record with the African Children’s Choir, who contribute to the album’s backup vocals and add a beautiful, unique melody.

The album-closing original, “Universal Child,” is one of the weakest of the group but still holds weight due to her incredible voice.

– Summer Moore

Indigo Girls, “Holly Happy Days” (Vanguard Records)

There aren’t a lot of surprises on the Indigo Girls’ “Holly Happy Days.” What the album does have in abundance is what’s made Amy Ray and Emily Saliers who they are: beautiful harmonizing and incredible instrumentation.

It’s chock full of fiddles, mandolins, banjos and, of course, acoustic guitar. The strongest tracks are the most traditional, including the chills-inducing “O Holy Night,” “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” and an understated take on “Angels We Have Heard On High.”

The songs penned by the Girls have their trademark down-home sound, which works best on Ray’s mournful “Mistletoe” but comes across as a bit hokey on Saliers’ “Your Holiday Song.”

– Karen Hawkins

Ronnie Spector, “Ronnie Spector’s Best Christmas Ever” (Bad Girl)

OK, that’s probably overstating things, but then again Spector has recorded some of the greatest Christmas rock music of all time, so she’s entitled to the hyperbole.

It’s hard to believe it was all the way back in 1963 when the leader of the Ronettes gave us versions of “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus,” “Sleigh Ride” and “Frosty The Snowman” that remain integral parts of today’s holiday celebration.

Her voice is no longer that of a precocious teenager, but it’s still smooth, sultry and unmistakably Ronnie. The CD is only five tracks long, but the point here is that she’s once again singing Christmas songs, and new ones at that.

This is a small serving of holiday musical comfort food, served up by someone who wrote the original recipe.

– Wayne Parry

Shelby Lynne, “Merry Christmas” (Everso Records)

Lynne is a latecomer to the holiday party, but her 11-song platter was worth the wait.

With nine classic tracks – “Silver Bells” and “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town” among them – along with a pair of originals, her full, rich voice is warm and lustrous.

One of the originals, “Xmas,” is a bluesy acknowledgment that not all Christmas memories are warm and fuzzy. The song is like a slow burn, gaining strength and ferocity that evokes not just Dusty Springfield but Nina Simone in its delivery.

– Matt Moore

Various artists, “World Christmas Party” (Putumayo)

The best thing about this holiday CD, apart from the opening reggae track that wishes listeners an irie Christmas, is that it breathes new life into classic Christmas songs.

Poncho Sanchez gives a groovy, Latin twist to “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” “Deck the Halls” is delivered in Portuguese and there’s a Hawaiian version of “Santa Claus is Coming to Town.”

There’s also a bluesy take on “Christmas Comes But Once a Year” and a jazzy rendition of “Carol and the Kings.”

– Sandy Cohen