christmas 4rom stevie

a nice christmas album from stevie which was recorded in 1967 while still in his teens after his "i was made to love her" album.what is good about this album is the amount of written original material besides the traditional material.the motown originals on this album are:'someday at christmas'/'one little christmas tree'/'the day that love began'/'bedtime for toys'/'twinkle twinkle little me'/'a warm little home on a hill'/'what christmas means to me'...wonder gives dramatic performances on the traditional pieces such as 'ave maria'as stevie also puts his harmonica spin on the song,and'the little drummer boy'.the written motown originals are just as good or better than the traditional songs.on 'that's what christmas means to me'-the motown signature sound is evident on this moderate upbeat number.stevie's performances on the slow paced motown written originals such as 'the day that love began'and 'a warm little home on the hill'is legend.this is a nice holiday album from stevie.

How can you go wrong with Stevie and Christmas?

Maybe Stevie can't go wrong, but other producers and songwriters can. Too bad this album was made before Stevie took control of his own career. If he wrote his own original songs and produced the music, this album could have been much, much better. Instead you get one classic Motown style original ("What Christmas Means To Me"), and few great interpretations of classic Christmas songs (highlighted by "Silver Bells" and "Ave Maria"), but the rest of the original songs are sappy and flat. The string section and choral arrangements sound like something you would expect from Johnny Mathis or Andy Williams, not from Stevie Wonder. It is still a good album, just not as good as you might expect.

No Christmas without Stevie...

I love this collection. Its difficult to descibe what his songs bring to Christmas. Most inspiring rendition of Schubert's Ave Maria. The day that love began and One little Christmas tree will bring a tear to your eye. Thats what Christmas means to me is so full of life and a very enjoyable track. Someday at Christmas is so appropriate to listen to in these belicose times. Silver Bells rings in Christmas time. If I had to pick a favourite song in the collection it would have to be Bedtime for toys. This is a wonderful collection. I only wish that artists, who record Christmas collections at the drop of a hat, would listen to this collection to realize what Christmas can mean with a beautiful rendition like this.