A bit of a surprise

The first song, "The Christmas Song" starts out with an orchestral sound, switches to a light jazzy lounge sound with a breathy Linda Ronstadt singing. It switches back to an orchestral ending. "I'll Be Home For Christmas" and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" are orchestral and Linda still sounds a little breathy. The third song is the duet with Rosemary Clooney. Quite a bit of it is sung by backup vocalists, but this song is really worthwhile. "River" is a beautiful song. The music is mostly simpler, with mainly strings and piano. I liked this selection quite well.

Now for something completely different! This must be the beginning of the work of the second producer. It's as if I changed the CD. "O Come O Come Emmanuel", "Lo, How A Rose E're Blooming", "Welsh Carol", Past Three O'Clock", "O Magnum Mysterium", and "Silent Night" are a cappella choral music. Linda's voice blends in completely with the choir. These are nice songs, done in a traditional choral way. The seventh song "Xicochi, Xichoci" is a lovely lullaby that translates: "Go to sleep, little baby, Surely the angels will carry you on your path, little green one." You can clearly hear Linda's breathy voice on "I Wonder As I Wander". The background is cello, harp, bass, and backup vocals. I liked "Away In A Manager" with Cookie Rankin singing beautifully.

I've read the reviews here and tried to sort out what's happening. I think that if you like a Christmas CD to create a mood or "hang together" somehow, then you may not like this CD. If you're still listening to Linda's classic "Blue Bayou", this CD could be a disappointment. I've been disappointed by other Christmas CD's and then gone on to love them. However, I wonder if the breathy singing style that Linda has adopted on several songs really works for her. I can't personally recommend this CD, but a lot of other people loved it. Some stores will let you listen to a CD before you buy it and that may be the way to go.

Some details: The liner notes are contained in a 12 page booklet that is quite good and contains the words to the songs (except for "I'll Be Home For Christmas"). The CD is 45 minutes long.

A Contractual Fulfillment Album

Most artists end their career at a label by releasing a Greatest Hits package, a Holiday album, or both as Linda has done. This album is well done for what it is, Linda continues to surprise her followers by not releasing an erstaz Christmas album, but an album of rare hymns save for a few tracks, five to be exact. This album has a feel of being recorded quickly, the first five songs feature full orchestra and a guest vocal by the now late Rosemary Clooney. The sixth to the fourteenth track features choir only, with Linda blending in. The song choice is unusual, especially the almost forgotton "Past Three O'Clock" and a rare vocal performance of "Lo! How A Rose E're Blooming." The Joni Mitchell cover of "River" is an addition to the hundreds of covers that currently exist, this version reminds me of her work with the Stone Ponys, especially the song "Long, Long Time." I do not like the version of "The Christmas Song" simply because of her phrasing. On the word "choir," it should consist two syllables. To hold the note she idionymns the word to read "quaa." What the hell is a "quaa??" Linda, you are a fine singer and had a marvelous career. No one will hold blame if your voice shows a bit of age and breaks on two syllables. Many reviews before this one state the album sounds unfinished. I feel the album was heading in two directions and instead of focusing on one "style," the project had to be finished because of deadlines so what we have are two ep's brought together to make a whole.

Christmas music with elegance

Let me begin by saying that this is now one of my favorite Christmas CDs. I actually bought it a couple of years ago and must say that it was not what I expected. Well, that's not quite true. The first four songs were EXACTLY what I expected.
Ms. Ronstadt gives both The Christmas Song and I'll Be Home for Christmas very cozy treatments. She may as well be standing in your living room next to the fireplace and singing right to you and yours. White Christmas is a lovely addition due to the fact that Linda sings it with Rosemary Clooney (who better?). Linda embellishes Rosie's lovely burnished vocals and the end result is one of my favorite renditions of the venerable standard.

The gears begin to shift with Joni Mitchell's River. I've heard this lovely song before but not in a Christmas setting (Holly Cole and Dianne Reeves both have strong versions). The lyrics only make a passing reference to Christmas but it works well here. Christmas albums don't often include songs dealing with the meloncholy aspect of the Holidays. This song gives this collection that chance. After River, a touching selection dealing with lost love, the album slides into sacred mode.

O Come, O Come Emmanuel has Linda prominently featured along with a Tuscon choir. Xicochi, Xiochi is actually arranged by Linda and has Kris Karge providing a lovely harmony vocal.

The next two songs, I Wonder As I Wander and Away in a Manger, are credited to "The Choir from Los Angeles" and do not feature Ms. Ronstadt -- at least according to the liner notes. I Wonder As I Wander does not appear on Christmas collections enough so I really appreciate its inclusion here. Away in a Manger has a Richard White adaptation and arrangement that is different than the two versions I am familiar with. I enjoy it quite a bit.

The next five songs are credited to "Linda and the Choir from Tuscon". She sings along with the choir and her voice is not easily distinguishable from the rest of the choir. These final five songs are: Lo, How a Rose E're Blooming (also not heard enough on holiday recordings -- at least in my book), Welsh Carol, Past Three O'clock, O Magnum Mysterium, and Silent Night. All are incredibly lovely and very well done.

My only critisism of the album is that Linda's voice is not prominently featured on most of the sacred selections. She is the reason I bought the CD after all. Never the less, this has grown into one of my favorite collections of holiday songs. I highly recommend it.