Your favorite holiday music

[Flynn]

I don't have specific CDs in mind but as a kid my mom always put on Christmas music by:

Nat King Cole
Bing Crosby

We always listened to Celtic harp music too.

PotteryBarn Kids have good Christmas CDs -- some traditional, some more hip. I like the jazzy Pottery Barn ones too but I'm sure you have those!

[Flynn]

That's a great idea Annie!!! I haven't heard anything about it but I can totally see DH and I listening after the kids go to bed!

DH is such a contradiction at times -- he is a CHRISTMAS FREAK! He loves it. He gets festive and very happy around the holidays! We HAVE to watch "It's a Wonderful Life" every Christmas Eve...

Great suggestion Annie!

I love "Jingle Bell Jazz" that I bought from Williams Sonoma around 7 or 8 years ago. I also have a Diana Krall Christmas CD - it's good, but I was thrilled when dh unearthed my Jingle Bell Jazz cd last year during his crazy CD re-org.

We have the Charlie Brown Christmas one too. I like that and the Ella Fitzgerald CD. Oh, and the George Winston winter/December.

Another favorite is Beth Nielsen Chapman Hymns. (Obivously there are religious overtones to it given the title). Most of it or all is sung in Latin.

I must also admit to liking the "Amy Grant Christmas" from when I was a kid. Not what you'd expect from me.

[DCJenn]

For those into listening to stories:

find Dylan Thomas' "A Child's Christmas in Wales". It's a family tradition that we listen to it every Christmas Eve. It's hilarious. and the story goes that he was three sheets when two radio interns managed to get him into the studio where he essentially sobered up enough to do his thing. He died not long after the recording was made.

In the traditional Christmas mode: Luciano Pavoratti's "O Holy Night". I sing along (badly) through the entire thing. We also grew up listening to all of the British Boy's Choirs. Amazing. and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir- those people have some pipes! oh, we have a great Louis Armstrong with Billie Holiday cd, too.

In the modern Christmas vein: Harry Connick Jr., all of the Very Special Christmas cds, Jewel put out a good one a few years back.

I love holiday music.

Jenn

I think I'm going to get this audio CD too. I love David Sedaris and the adults can listen to it while playing games/cooking after the kids go to bed. Has anyone read it? I still have never heard his SantaLand Diaries that he did for NPR originally.

I posted a link to the SantaLand Diaries awhile back in this forum. It's the NPR link. You can listen to it for free, and also get to listen to David Rakoff and his hillarious Christmas Windows bit. I totally reccomend it.

[SuzySunshine]

I think my favorite Christmas CD that I have is Harry Connick Jr.

[Stella]

I just bought Aimee Mann's Christmas album. It's nice and mellow and not pukey-joyful, just nice.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
One More Drifter in the Snow offers a bittersweet--but not downbeat--look at a holiday that represents the height of happiness for some, the depths of sadness for others. Following in the classy footsteps of Miss Peggy Lee, Aimee Mann takes an intimate approach to an increasingly hectic time of year. In other words, the set is a throwback to a slower-paced era. (In cinematic terms, that means more Meet Me in St. Louis, less Jingle All the Way.) There are two fitting originals, "Calling on Mary" (Mann) and "Christmastime" (Jon Brion and Michael Penn). The rest are seasonal favorites, with the exception of Jimmy Webb's "Whatever Happened to Christmas," which may be new to some. On all tracks, the focus is on the tasteful strings--credit Patrick Warren for the chamberlin, celeste, and pump organ--and Mann's delicate delivery. Overall, the artist is more interested in providing comfort than radical reinvention, although a dreamier-than-usual "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" enjoys a slight edge over the other selections. Grant Lee Phillips, taking over from Boris Karloff, provides the theatrical narration on "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch." --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Product Description
Grammy winner and Oscar nominee Aimee's first Christmas album is a collection of holiday classics and two original, beautiful, and bittersweet songs written by Mann and Michael Penn. Reminiscent of classic albums of the 40's and 50's, but without any retro kitsch. Like Frank Sinatra, Johnny Mathis, and Peggy Lee, Aimee Mann captures the emotional beauty of Christmas.

I also have various rat pack/standards albums.