New Christmas albums

Happy Xmas by Eric Clapton. Yes, the great Slowhand himself has recorded an album of Christmas music. So if you are a fan and you like Yuletide music with a bluesy touch, then this one is for you. His guitar playing works very well with the traditional stuff like White Christmas, Away In A Manger, Home For The Holidays and Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, which comes out doubly sadder.

Clapton has written an original tune For Love On Christmas Day, which with the right pop rock artist might find its niche in Christmas playlists to come. And would you believe, Clapton has included a tribute in memory of the departed EDM DJ superstar Avicii and it is a six-minute version of Jingle Bells. Clapton, Jingle Bells and Avicii, a really odd combination. But it is Christmas and anything cheerful goes.

Christmas Is Here by the pop a cappella group Pentatonix. Looks like these guys are making their sound part of the annual Christmas celebration with their third and latest album Christmas Is Here. Might get boring in the future. But not yet. The group’s unique a cappella rendition with pop appeal freshens up even the overused Christmas carols. 

It is no different here with perennial favorites like Grown-up Christmas List featuring superb vocals by Kelly Clarkson, What Christmas Means To Me, It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas and Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree. 

Greensleeves, an interlude cut, is totally divine and I like it that they have included Making Christmas, a tune from the Tim Burton animated film, The Nightmare Before Christmas. But what is PTX doing accompanied by an orchestra in Jingle Bells? That track could have come from just any pop group.

Season Of Peace: The Christmas Collection by Michael McDonald. The warmth and intimacy of Michael’s vocal tones are just perfect for Christmas music. The cuts here come from two previously released albums. But no matter, he has chosen the best tracks, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen and O Holy Night.  He has some originals, Peace, To Make A Miracle, Christmas On The Bayou and a funky Everytime Christmas Comes Around. The real surprise though is Winter Wonderland with the ukulele of Jake Shimabukuro.

This Christmas Day by Jessie J. Just heard her Bang Bang on the radio so this one comes on as a huge surprise.  She is in great voice tackling Christmas standards with a light jazzy touch. White Christmas, Silent Night, Santa Claus Is Coming To Town, Jingle Bell Rock, Let It Snow, Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree and Jingle Bells. The best ones though are her duets, Winter Wonderland with the wondrous sounding Boyz II Men and The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire) with the soulful Babyface.

Is Engelbert Humperdinck really 82 years old? Every information site I went to says that he is. He does not only look great on the cover of his new album titled Warmest Christmas Wishes, also sounds fantastic with a full, strong voice. This is Humperdinck’s second Christmas album and his first one was released about 40 years ago. He has sold millions of records since and popularized a big number of songs, but I am glad he decided to return to Christmas music at this time. It is great that a voice like his is preserving these beautiful holiday songs for all time.

Humperdinck mixes new pop and traditional carols in the album. Silent Night, O Tannenbaum to I’ll Be Home For Christmas, White Christmas, Still, Still, Still, to recent works Silently Falls The Snow, A Christmas For The Family, Snowy Christmas and others.

For those of you who prefer variety for their background music at Christmastime, your best bet is the NOW Merry Christmas album. The big-selling NOW series is famous for creating all-hits compilations from various labels and this is a special release on vinyl this season. The album comes in two discs with 20 songs and because this is a NOW collection, each one is a huge, well-remembered and loved Christmas song by a big-name artist.

Mistletoe by Justin Bieber; Winter Things by Ariana Grande; Mary, Did You Know by Pentatonix; Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas by Sam Smith; Santa Claus Is Coming To Town by Bruce Springsteen; Underneath The Tree by Kelly Clarkson; a duet of Little Drummer Boy, Silent Night by The Temptations; Feliz Navidad by Jose Feliciano; and Peace On Earth by Bing Crosby and David Bowie and others.