Best Christmas music, CD or album on your list ?


Ok, here's my little secret (call it a guilty pleasure) for my favorite Christmas music.

I of course like the classics by Bing and Nat...BUT...there is one album I listen year 'round, even in the heat of summer, because of the magnificent orchestration.

I am not a real fan of country music by the way (although I like everything Mary Chapin Carpenter makes as a singer-songwriter).

I have been listening to a glorious CD by Faith Hill ''JOY TO THE WORLD''. I first stumbled on the music special (Great Performances series) on PBS on a certain night when I woke up at 3am, turned on the TV and, WOW! I just couldn't believe the quality of the music. The best tv concert I ever experienced, Faith Hill is just glowing with incredible class.

I could not find a full DVD of this performance, I guess it is PBS property, so I'm obligated to live with this recording in HD (and the space it takes on my hard drive - on my recording machine.

There is a CD, and it is stunning. And sells for cheap on Amazon. For headphone enthusiasts, there are so many things to like here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4wNqBBt_NE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9vq0h0PZY0

My close second is "Come Darkness Come Light: Twelve Songs of Christmas" by Mary Chapin Carpenter.

How often do you hear ORIGINAL Christmas songs? Carpenter co-authored 6 songs on this collection, and they sound like classics already. Beautiful guitar styling, heart-warming stories, and well you get the idea.

Both albums are the best bargains on Amazon.

How about YOUR preferred holiday-season music?
sonicbeauty
The McGarrigle's were something special

thanks for the recommendation I just bought it this morning
Bah freakin' humbug, I hate xmas music. Well, the Chimpmunks are pretty special.
I LOVE Christmas albums. I tend to play a lot of Christmas music between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Along with the standards from Bing, Nat, Brenda Lee, Jose Feliciano, Johnny Mathis, Elvis, Burl Ives, et al, that I have to hear each year for Christmas to be complete (though you tend to hear these everywhere at Christmas), I tend to play these albums a lot at Christmastime:

Leon Redbone - Christmas Island - Whole album is good, a different sound to stir in to the classics
A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector
Andy Williams - The Andy Williams Christmas Album - My very favorite as a little kid. Don't know why.
Barenaked Ladies - Barenaked for the Holidays - fun arrangements of the classics
Odetta - Christmas Sprirituals - I love Odetta, she's a commanding soul
Carolyn Wonderland - Fireside Songs for the Soul - Fun album
The Irish Tenors - We Three Kings - Love all their Christmas albums
Danny Wright - An Intimate Christmas - Interesting piano arrangements I like to mix in
Pink Martini - Joy to the World - Interesting and international
Jewel - Joy: A Holiday Collection - Jewel being Jewel
Martina McBride - White Christmas - I was surprised by how much I like to play this whole album. Simply done well.
Willie Nelson - Pretty Paper - Pretty Paper is one of my favorite Christmas songs
Twisted Sister - A Twisted Christmas - crazy, but Dee's thunderous vocals make O Come All Ye Faithful sound like a Christian call to arms. An absolute blast to crank this.
The Messiah - London Philharmonic - Hallelujah is too triumphant to not rise to
Whitney Houston - Do You Hear What I Hear - She set a new standard on this song for me

I'll have fun checking out everyone else's list too!
I have this Faith Hill CD and will have to listen to it again. I don't remember being that impressed, but it is in with my stack of Christmas that is out year around. I enjoy The Priests, The Canadian Tenors, and even Celtic Thunder for Christmas albums.
-
An Austin Rhythm And Blues Christmas

A New Possibility - John Fahey's Christmas Album

The only two I listen to.