5 comments about Slow Jams Christmas, Vol. 1.

1. Having a hard time getting into the Christmas mood, put this on and you will be transformed instantly.



2. This CD is wonderful I've had it for years, it is great music for a party or even just if you are relaxing and enjoying the season this is a great CD!



3. I recommend this 2007 CD to anyone who enjoys Christmas music sung by various soulful artists, old and new. This is great for the car or just sitting home setting up the tree. This CD also makes a nice gift to relatives and friends around the holidays.



4. slow jams christmas is a christmas cd for not just you and your boo, it's delightful for the whole family, every family will enjoy it my family did.



5. This is THE BEST COLLECTION of Soul Artists....
   Singing All Your Christmas Favorites in Their Own Styles!
   A TRADITIONAL MUST Every Christmas for The Whole family!

5 comments about I Am Santa Claus.

1. If I had to pick just one of Bob River's Christmas parody CD's, this would be the one. Sure, there are a few clunkers here, but most of the songs are truly inspired. "Oh Little Town of Bethlehem" is an EXACT knock-off of the Animals' "House of the Rising Sun". Some of the other gems are "Walkin' 'Round In Women's Underwear", "Manger 6", "The 'What's It To Ya' Chorus", and "Didn't I Get This Last Year" -- a hilarious take-off on "Do You Hear What I Hear". One cut, "The Kids", isn't a song at all, just a funny and charming conversation with two children.
   River's other CD's have one or two good Christmas parodies on them, but for the most part they're disappointing and don't live up to the comic genius displayed here. For $10, you can't go wrong with this one.



2. This is a great Christmas comedy album by our friend Bob Rivers. There are some clunkers on this CD which stop it from being a 5 star album, but the funny tunes that will make you cry and pee save it from being a 3 star album
   
   1. There's Another Santa Claus - The album starts off with a funny and catchy parody. My daughter loved this song so much she wanted to hear it over and over again.
   
   2. Walkin 'Round In Women's Underwear - One of the greatest parodies Bob has ever done. This is pure genious. I laugh everytime I hear it. Handcuffs and Madonna never went so well together in a tune.
   
   3. I Am Santa Claus - Christmas goes metal with this great parody of the Black Sabbath classic 'Iron Man'
   
   4. Manger 6 - A short and funny ditty from a guy sounding like Tom Bedett from Motel 6.
   
   5. O Little Town Of Bethlehem - House of the Rising Sun parody
   
   6. I Came Upon A Roadkill Deer - Parody of 'I came upon a Midnight Clear'. The song is kind of slow and by the time you get to the joke, you are ready to move on.
   
   7. Teddy The Red-Nosed Senator - Great punch in the nose to that cursed Kennedy clan. I like the recording on this. The voice sounds like an old 1940's crooner coming through an ancient radio. "He's a drunken SOB!" hahahahaaha
   
   8. Grahbe Yahbalz - A good joke, but subpar with the really good stuff on this album
   
   9. A Letter To Santa - Marlon Brando parody of The Godfather
   
   10. Jingle Hells Bells - The guy who sings this could make a career easily as Bon Scot in an AC/DC cover band.
   
   11. The Kids - This is hilarious. It a take off of 'Kids say the darndest things' or something like that. We lost Vietnam.
   
   12. The Magical Kingdom Of Claus - Santa sings ala Wizard of OZ. How everything is made in Japan because children no longer want dolls or toys made of wood.
   
   13. The 'What's It To Ya' Chorus - Classic parody. It never gets old.
   
   14. Didn't I Get This Last Year? - This is my absolute favorite song on the album. Everytime the line comes up that goes "Surprise Surprise, a coupon for some fries", I lose control and laugh uncontrollably.
   
   15. The Under Tree World Of Jacques Cousteau - 75% of the time I find myself hitting the >> button.
   
   16. O Christmas Tree - A nice instrumental of "O Christmas Tree" with a chain saw buzzing and then fire burning. The Green Peacer in your family will love this.
   
   Happy Holidays



3. If you enjoy the offbeat, this is a terrific CD. It lends quite a bit of humor to the otherwise normal songs. It's a great pick-me-up if you need one.



4. I love Twisted Christmas. I listened to it as a kid when my parents had it and this year i purchased my own copy!



5. This is an excellent CD. The songs are catchy and the quality of the music is first class. Bob Rivers may have an irreverant take on christmas but a healthy dose of synicism is always welcome. I would thouroughly recommend this ablum to anyone who wants to really laugh

3 comments about Bill and Gloria Gaither: Homecoming Christmas.

1. This is one of the better videos. I love the footage about the kids in South Africa. I would recommend this video for any Gospel Music Nut.



2. This was a joy to watch. The music and the scenes of the aid to the South African orphans was very touching. The program was put together very well .



3. These dvds have been such an encouragement and vehicle for JOY in my family's lives!!!!!

4 comments about Sing, Choirs of Angels!.

1. This brand-new recording of Christmas music from the Tabernacle Choir is marvellous. Recorded on their own "Mormon Tabernacle Choir" label, this is the choir's first recording of seasonal music, and it surpasses any previous holiday release that the choir has made.
   
   Using the music of both John Rutter and the arrangements of Mack Wilberg, "Sing Choirs of Angels" enjoys a wonderful flow from track to track: from the propulsive "Fum, Fum, Fum" to the sublimely meditative "What Sweeter Music"; from the majestic "Oh Come All Ye Faithful" to a brand new music and lyric setting of the gentle "Still, Still, Still" there is something here for everyone. Listening to this recording brings a warm holiday spirit into my heart and home.
   
   Recorded in the Tabernacle at Temple Square in Salt Lake City, and using the versatile Orchestra at Temple Square, the choir and orchestra sound luminous and warm; these new recordings truly are miles above anything the Choir has done before - the polish and feeling that they bring to these new recordings are stunning.
   
   The booklet that accompanies the CD is beautiful as well, with full color photographs of traditional Christmas symbols, full lyrics, track by track commentary, and a glossary of what each Christmas symbol means. This is a quality gift to give to friends and neighbors to help usher in the Christmas season. Unreservedly recommended.



2. I have about 40 Christmas CDs, and this one is in my top 2 or 3 favorites. The orchestra compliments the choir so beautifully and the offerings here are varied and interesting. 5 stars!



3. A fantastic album! A great variety of songs... many that you can sing along to. We literally had this in the c.d. player the whole Christmas season. You can't beat MoTab!



4. If there is a better choir to listen to during the Christmas holiday season, I don't know their name. For at least 60 years the sounds of Christmas have always been something I look forward to, and this DVD doesn't disappoint my expectations. Only Scrooge could be dissatisfied by this one.

5 comments about Bach - Christmas Oratorio / Gardiner.

1. It surprises me that a number of people here have given this splendid recording negative reviews, but that is , I guess, proof that people's tastes and expectations are different.
   
   What I expect from any Bach performance by (Sir) John Eliot are forward-moving tempi when they need to move forward. Natural tempi in the slower music, always allowing the singers to breathe and phrase easily. I expect crisp, energetic articulation and immaculate intonation from the chorus, and snappy, alive playing from the orchestra. I also expect from Sir John a deep experience of what makes Bach's choral music "tick", what makes it sound best. I get all this in spades from this recording of this most delightful music. Additionally, I get an excellent group of soloists, one of whom, von Otter, is completely splendid.
   
   Add to this an ideal sound balance in Archiv's terrific engineering, a most beautiful cover and a good price, what more can one ask for? Merry Christmas!



2. Once again I have purchased a Gardiner disk based on his reputation only, and have been completely satisfied. I love Bach and I enjoy Gardiner's interpretations, so how could I go wrong. The choir and orchestra maintain the energy and intensity throughout the entire recording. I was particularly impressed with mezzo-soprano Anne Sophie von Otter and soprano Nancy Argenta. Both are favourites of Gardiner (see his recordings of Bach's St. Matthew Passion and B minor Mass) and are fast becoming favourites of mine.
   Some reviews have trashed Gardiners expression and tempo, but I think the spirit of Bach is captured beautifully with this recording.



3. The Monteverdi Choir delivers, as it usually does, in the big choral numbers. The soloists are all top-notch ("Bereitet dich Zion" so well executed). Always a pleasure to come back to again and again.



4. This disc is a bit of an oddity. I can give it a perfectly sincere recommendation, but I think I had better explain myself carefully, and explain exactly what I am recommending.
   
   The spirit of the selection is much what you would expect in a disc entitled `Christmas Treats from JSB' or `Immortal Melodies from The Christmas Oratorio' or something of that sort. Bach's Christmas Oratorio is not an oratorio in the Handelian sense. In the 1730's Bach faithfully turned out a cantata for each Sunday and major feast, but in one particular year he elected to reprocess some of his older music, most of it secular originally, and string the numbers together for the entire festive season under the overall title of `Christmas Oratorio'. Borrowing, adaptation and recomposition of earlier music, sometimes one's own sometimes someone else's, was a standard practice at the time. Nobody saw anything wrong with it, and to this day neither do I. Neither Bach nor Handel can exactly be taxed with lack of original output in astonishing quantities, and it is not as if the recycling of the material was not quite a major task in its own right. The Christmas Oratorio is commonly viewed as a lesser work than the B minor Mass or the St Matthew Passion, and while I probably go along with that view to a certain extent, I don't do so for the reasons I usually see argued. The secular origin of the music is neither here nor there in my opinion - all Bach's music is explicitly written for the greater glory of God. Also, when I see this work compared to its disadvantage with the B minor Mass on grounds of recycling, I have to recall that the B minor Mass itself is made up of recycled material practically from start to finish.
   
   To anyone who does not know the Christmas Oratorio and who may have been put off by any of this foolishness, my own advice is simply to ignore the whole fuss. What you will find in it is a set of Bach cantatas produced to the same astounding standard of inspiration, consistency and workmanship that you will find in any of the others. What makes this disc a one-off is first that everyone has taken advantage of the single series-title to pretend that the Christmas Oratorio is a single work like Messiah or the St Matthew Passion and extract a selection of goodies from it to make a single disc's-worth, leaving out the more workaday and `business' elements, notably recitatives. The engaging oddity to go along with this demotic proceeding is that the style is uncompromisingly severe, almost as if we were dealing with Bach's motets.
   
   Nineteen numbers - solos (plus one with an echo-effect), a duet, a sinfonia and choruses both traditional and composed either wholly or over traditional material by Bach - have been selected. The four standard types of vocal soloist have been given work, and it is probably not a coincidence that there is no counter-tenor in a production like this. 20 years ago the `authentic' movement was starting to relax a little, but the instruments used here are uncompromisingly authentic, and so is the penchant for brisk speeds. By now I am so inured with this way of doing things that I adapt to it naturally, but readers of this notice should perhaps take warning from comments by other reviewers who are not so reconciled to the idiom. For me, the quickstep approach (even in 3-time as in the first two numbers) enhances the sublime sense of a march in Bach's wonderful polyphony, but I'm not you. One thing that ought to be a bonus for any listener is the quality of some of the instrumental work at this pace. I looked to see in particular who was the trumpeter - yes, you've guessed: Crispian Steele Perkins of course.
   
   Given the slight sense of facing in two directions, I can report that the quality of the work is exemplary. All the four main vocal soloists distinguish themselves, and it was a particular pleasure to hear Anne Sophie von Otter so early in her career, especially as she is given the loveliest and tenderest number of all, Schlafe, mein Liebster, surely something to win over the doughtiest opponent of this school of interpretation. I shall also highlight the tenor Hans Peter Blochwitz for the ease with which he overcomes the formidable technical demands of his first two arias - the coloratura of his first test in particular is blatantly instrumental in inspiration, in a way that Handel's, however florid and rapid, just never is.
   
   This issue is obviously not part of Gardiner's recent `pilgrimage' series offering all the cantatas. The 1987 recording is not as beautiful as he is given in the recent sets, but it is perfectly adequate. The liner-note gives the texts with translation, and that is all one basically needs, although some comment on the music itself would have been welcome, as not everyone is familiar with its genesis. There is nothing about the singers either, but there is a picture of Gardiner J E P as he looked 20 years ago, if not more. Also looking out at us in the familiar study is the composer himself. How often, I wonder, have I looked uncomprehendingly at that face and tried to infer from it what are specifically the features of a man possessed of an infinite musical talent. I shall never work that one out, but at least he knew not to hide the talent from us and I can be well satisfied with that.



5. MONTEVERDI CHOIR AND THE ENGLISH BAROQUE SOLOISTS THE 'STARS' OF THIS RECORDING!!!!!
   Johann Sebastion Bach (1685-1750) wrote very little church music after 1730, so it is not surprising that when he produced for Christmas, 1734, an 'oratorio' in six parts he adapted much of it from earlier compositions, mostly from secular odes. Recitatives and chorale settings were, of course, new, but otherwise all but one of the arias and nearly all of the choruses were 'parodies'. The six cantatas of the 'Christmas Oratorio' are designed to be performed on separate days from Christmas to Epiphany, but it does not necessarily follow that they are unconnected. Bach must have composed the work continuously, and there are many, sometimes obvious, sometimes subtle connections between the separate parts. The 'Christmas Oratorio' was virtually the last of Bach's major contributions to the music of the church, later works being almost exclusively either parodies or versions of cantatas written in former time.
   
   Gardiner employed a large choir in this 1987 recording: 9 sopranos, 5 altos to which he added Michael Chance making it six; Chance was not a regular member of the Choir at this time, but Gardiner frequently added him for additional strength in the alto part and he was needed just based upon the other voice parts, 7 tenors and 5 basses. The choir iw truly outstanding in this recording: they are powerful, display unusually clear diction, especially considering the superfast tempos in some of the choruses. At no time are the words lost to the listener. The tone quality is appropriate for this music, especially the chorales where everything is exposed. Gardiner also managed to achieve excellent balance as per usual.
   
   I was very impressed with the English Baroque Soloist; they had a 'bright' sound, clean articulation and did a great job of matching the emotional investment of the choir.
   
   As for the soloists (and this is one reason I didn't give 5 stars); they were adequate, but not exciting, skilled but not inspiring. They are: Nancy Argenta (soprano)-von Otter (alto). Blochwitz (tenor) and O. Bar (bass). In all fairness I kept comparing them to the 1989 recording by Collegium Vocale, with Herreweghe, for his soloists were outstanding: B. Schlick (soprano) M. Chance (alto) H. Crook (tenor) and Peter Kooey (bass). A pity I cannot combine Herreweghe's soloists with the Monteverdi Choir!!!!Well, it's all a matter of what you like, so do whatever your ear leads you to.

2 comments about Watching the Snow.

1. Every song on this CD is wonderful. As always Michael's lyrics and music are superb. Clever, festive, fun and romantic...painting a Christmas portrait as only Michael can do.



2. I purchased this CD this March unaware that it was a Christmas CD. What a pleasant surprise. I've been playing it almost daily and looking forward to Christmas 08!!! I simply love Michael Franks and this CD made me fall deeper in love with him.

2 comments about A Hawaiian Christmas.

1. Listen to the samples of these apparently unfamiliar Hawaiian songs and discover that you've heard/sung these before. Backed by Jeff Peterson on Guitar, Chino Montero on 'Ukulele, Stephen Jones on Bass, and Bobby Ingano on Steel Guitar, Amy Hanaiali'i makes your holiday season light and wonderful. Back to the Hawaiian songs:
   "Hamau E Na Kanaka"="Hark! The Herald Angels Sing"
   "Betelehema Iki E"="O Little Town of Bethelehem"
   "Po La'i E"="Silent Night"
   "Pomaika'i Wale Ko Ke Ao"="Joy To The World"
   "Ho'onani Kakou Ia Ia"="Adeste Fidelis," aka "O Come All Ye Faithful"
   "Ka Po La'ela'e Ka Hikina Mai"="It Came Upon a Midnight Clear"
   "Po Hemolele"="O Holy Night"
   "Ke Akua Mana E"="How Great Thou Art"
   If the Hawaiian versions are too foreign, there are more familiar Christmas songs, such as "Have Yourself A Merry Christmas" or "Mary Did You Know?" All in all, a delightful Christmas/holiday evening in Hawai'i!



2. I bought this CD as we have been in love with Hawaiian music since a trip there a few years ago. I looked at a lot of Hawaiian Christmas music online and it seemed a little tacky...kind of touristy if you can follow what I mean. Then I heard Amy and knew this was the one to buy. There is a good mix on this CD and I love hearing some of the classics done in her native tongue. Too bad IZ has passed...I would love to hear Amy and him do some duets.

5 comments about Raffi's Christmas Album.

1. Our children listen to the classic CD over and over during the holidays, and it never seems to get old. It has a nice blend of traditional children's songs and new Raffi christmas songs. This is a great CD.

   I grew up with Raffi, and this CD brings backs pleasant memories of the holidays.

   This CD is available at Amazon.com in a new REMASTERED version.

   I highly Raffi's Christmas album or almost any other CD by Raffi. Raffi is the most important children's musician in modern history.




2. This is a good cd. It has some traditional christmas music, and a few cute little songs but stays with the reasonable realm. It is typical of Raffi's style and the kids love it.



3. This is one of the best Christmas albums of all time by anyone. Adults can enjoy it just as much as children. It is a pleasant, engaging, simple album of Christmas songs, well sung, well played, without the excesses and unlistenable portions which mar almost every album of Christmas music by other artists. It is a masterpiece of holiday music, timeless, for the ages.



4. I enjoy this CD so much, it's become a holiday tradition in my family to play it during the christmas season. One occasion is when we do all of our Christmas baking singing along while baking cookies with my mother and sister. Or on Christmas morning while opening up presents. The CD has been at our Christmas celebrations since we were children and i can't imagine going without it when i have children of my own.



5. Raffi has a calming, melodic voice and is one of the few children's entertainers who also appeals to adults. All of his albums are well balanced so that there are upbeat moments and times when the kiddies need to calm down.

5 comments about A Winter's Solstice VI.

1. I have bought several of the Winter Solstice records as an alternative to the usual fare including "Winter Solstice Reunion",and "Solstice on Ice" which came after this release and which I thought were substantial disapointments.Winter Solstice VI is by far better than those and better than the original Winter Solstice releases as well which originally led me to hear this cd.



2. This is the most relaxing Christmas Music. Each note is in a way a Christmas Present for your ears. The Celtic influence is a lovely change and you can feel a sense of Christmas magic is woven through this CD. Some pieces are Jazzy, but still laid back. "Secret Places" is in a way haunting. "Snow Dance" is serious, while "Western Sky" is all encompassing and classic. You really can't feel rushed when you want to listen to this music. I won't let you rush at all, it will make you sit down and sip hot spiced apple cider! Take a deep breath...you can do this...
   
   ~The Rebecca Review



3. There are some good moments on this one, but this is my least favorite of Winter Solstice series. I think Windham Hill did return to form & quality with their next offering, "A Winter Solstice Reunion". This one opens with an uncharacteristically "smooth-jazz" piece called "Joyful Times".
   "Yesterday's Rain" & "Snow Dance" are pleasant, but to my ears they are in a similar vein. (Perhaps more New Age-like). And "Western Sky" is similarly pretty, but at nearly seven minutes, it becomes a bit long & repetitive. This is the most uneven disc to date. The earlier discs contained quiet, often acoustic pieces that weren't quite as slickly (over) produced. Most likely this reflects the departure of Will Ackerman a few years before, and I believe Dawn Atkinson may not have worked on this one either though I may be mistaken. There are still some great gems here, such as Michael Hedges' "Ursa Major", Liz Story's "Snowfall" & Tim Story's great contributions .



4. This is great music, period. Though it really is appropriate for any time of the year (and I just cannot go almost an entire year without listening to this one), it simply would not be Christmas without this disc. I defy anyone to hear this while reading by the glow of a fire and say that they don't like it.
   
   This is the best of the first series of six Winter Solstice discs (seven if you count the "Silver anniversary edition" of Vol. 1), though I found all six enjoyable to some degree. I find that I can only hear so many versions of the "classic" Christmas songs before I tire of them, especially with repeat playings. Winter Solstice VI gives you an excellent alternative to the tried-and-true. So put this one on, kick back, and enjoy where this collection of songs takes you. All the songs are wonderful in their own way, though "Western Sky" alone would have made it worth the cost of buying this one.



5. I own Windham Hill's "Winter Solstice IV" and I must say I prefer "Winter Solstice VI". It is for those who like their Christmas music on a quieter register. Beautiful instrumentals and blissfully peaceful.

5 comments about The Christmas Album.

1. Terrific! I had this on cassette tape and then when I changed cars I had a CD player only so I ordered this on CD. Neils choice of songs is perfect. My daughter even likes it!



2. Yes Neil is Jewish, and that matters how?
   He has a terrific voice and he sings these songs GREAT!
   If you dont like Neil Diamond or you dont like the fact a "jewish" person is singing them THEN DONT BUY IT!
   Everyone else, this is a GREAT CD... gets me in the xmas spirit every year. Even my kids like it!



3. Dating probably back to when Irving Berlin wrote "White Christmas," there's been a tradition of popular Jewish artists recording Christmas songs. Having seen his contemporary New Yorkers Paul Simon & Art Garfunkel, Barbra Streisand and Barry Manilow record Christmas songs at various stages in their careers, in 1992 Neil Diamond interrupted his decade-long descent into irrelevant schmaltz by producing this somewhat uneven but overall entertaining collection of holiday music. He wisely begins with "O Come, O Come Emmanuel," with an arrangement a bit reminiscent of "Kol Nidre" from "The Jazz Singer, but that's about the only concession to his Jewish tradition Neil makes on this album. He employs choirs on several of the most spiritual Christmas songs ("We Three Kings," "Silent Night," "Hark the Herald Angels Sing," "O Holy Night"), and for the most part he offers an enthusiastic if not exactly soulful interpretation. He does a really nice number on "Little Drummer Boy," making it sound unlike any other interpretation.
   
   He hits a rough patch with several songs that already have definitive versions and would've been better left alone. Neil comes nowhere remotely close to the raw power of Springsteen's "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town," and it would've been a much better idea to just have done the traditional Sinatraesque rendition instead. Neil's "Christmas Song" isn't likely to make anybody forget Nat King Cole's classic interpretation. For reasons which boggle the imagination, he then launches into "Morning Has Broken," which isn't even a Christmas song and which was definitively done by Cat Stevens years ago, and then even more amazingly, he tackles John Lennon's "Happy Christmas (War Is Over)."
   
   Neil redeems himself handsomely, though, with a "doo-wop" version of "White Christmas," followed by a barbershop quartet take on "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen." His "Jingle Bell Rock" is okay, too. He launches into a "Crying In Your Pretzels" country twang on "Silver Bells," which if nothing else offers up that classic Neil Diamond cheese we all love, where he stops in the middle of a song to reminisce about those Brooklyn roads he grew up on. The only song on the album, though, that ever gets any airplay these days is the one he'd previously recorded on the "Primitive" album in 1984, "You Make It Feel Like Christmas."
   
   All in all, a decent enough effort, and popular enough that it led to a second volume in 1994, which is not only a much better showcase for Neil's talent, but in fact is one of the best Christmas CDs of the past 20 years.



4. It's almost impossible to find a low point on this cd, and that's because they're all low points. This one is a travesty; an album so bad, so melodically vacuous, so uninspired and derivative, it deserves a special place in the pantheon of bad Christmas music (or the trash can, take your choice). Hear Neil "Three Note" Diamond savagely butcher such standards as Silent Night and The Christmas Song. Hear John Lennon spin in his grave as Neil treats Happy Christmas (War is Over) with all the delicacy and grace of a charging rhinocerous. And let's not forget the virtual note-for-note rip-off of Bruce Springsteen's Santa Claus is Comin' to Town. And to think, this guy put out another collection of anti-holidy cheer only a few years later. Play this one on Halloween instead and scare all the kids away.



5. this cd isn't a gift its an award, kinda like the nobel peace prize. only given the people who are deemed worthy of such an honor. the diamond realy feels chirstmas like know one else can. his passion for the season is showing though with such classics as "little drumer boy". the way he sings it, he must have been there for that experence, or "you make it feel like christmas", after listening to that one i feel like chirstmas, if you know what i mean. so don't give this to friend, award it to them and then celebrate chistmas everyday the diamond way!