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Countless singers have recorded the now-famous title track to this 14-song collection, but none have explored its evocative nuances as fully as the man who first brought it into our living rooms–Nat King Cole. Then again, his honeyed throat and refined delivery allowed him to make just about any song his own–even ubiquitous carols such as “O Holy Night” and “Adeste Fideles.” Cole’s gift–the thing that made him beloved by grandmas and jazzbos alike–was his ability to conjure images so vivid, you need only close your eyes in order to see, say, a snow-swept town square (”Caroling, Caroling”) or that holy scene from 2,000 years ago (”Away in a Manger”). –David Sprague

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Like Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas,” Nat Cole’s “The Christmas Song” stands as one of two or three pillars of holiday music. This collection of songs and greetings includes another technologically induced daughter-father duet on Mel Torme’s classic hit as well daddy Cole’s 1961 version of the tune. Fans of both Natalie and her dad will put this on the top of their wish lists. Two previously unreleased tracks–”God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman” and “O Come All Ye Faithful”–will prompt a lot of lovers of Christmas music to fall in love again with Cole’s incomparable style and timeless voice. –Martin Keller

Product Description

10 tracks including “The Christmas Song”.

Product Description

2000 holiday album from the best selling female artist of all time worldwide. 24 Christmas classics. Mercury. 2000.

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The Mormon Tabernacle Choir sets the tone for what Christmas albums should sound like, and Joy to the World upholds their exacting standard of excellence. Re-released from two concerts recorded in 1970 and 1977 and repacked with three bonus tracks, this collection is as perfect as it gets, thanks to pristine production, gorgeous vocal arrangements, and stately accompaniment by the Philadelphia Brass Ensemble, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and the Columbia Symphony Orchestra. This record will set the mood for reveling, both with more contemporary carols, like “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and “The Christmas Song,” and sacred numbers, such as Handel’s “Hallelujah Chorus” and “O Holy Night.” Joy to the World qualifies as an essential yuletide album. –Jaan Uhelszki

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Resplendent in voice and manner, José Carreras, Placido Domingo, and Luciano Pavarotti deliver 21 songs of traditional sacred music and secular numbers in a remarkable 1999 live recording from the opulent Viennese concert hall (Konzerthaus), with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and a renowned choir. The Three Tenors are practically as famous as the faces of Mount Rushmore and inspire perhaps even more awe and adulation around the world than the four presidents. The performances–whether alone, in tandem, or simply as the threesome that has made them collectively famous–are generally impeccable for their passion, nuance, and sheer tour de force vocal artistry. Reaching often into the classical realm for such works as the traditional German carol “Susani,” Strauss’s and Brahms’s “Wiegenlied,” plus traditional Polish and Spanish pieces, the trio also visits Pavarotti’s “Ave Maria, dolce Maria” (cowritten with Vittoriano Benvenuti), and “Un nuevo siglo,” written by Domingo’s son. Only John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s “Happy Christmas/War Is Over” doesn’t quite work in this grand setting. –Martin Keller