A Christmas Present

Amazon.com
Christmas wasn't always the easiest time of year when Merle Haggard was growing up in Oklahoma. Money was tight and the elements were harsh, but faith helped the family get through. That's exactly the sense the country legend puts across on this holiday collection. Hard times are chronicled on songs like "Daddy Won't Be Home for Christmas" and "If We Make it Through December," but joy is found when the smallest of pleasures ("Grandma's Homemade Christmas Card") saves the day. --David Sprague

Customer Reviews:

Choral perfectionists........2007-02-19

This is an essential Christmas choral CD. The program itself is fabulous and unique, lacking the tacky "favorites" found on most recordings of this type. Entirely a cappella except for two Rutter arrangements with orchestra. Not a single track is lacking in depth and sincerity.

Polyphony is one phenomenal choir. For its small size, it has truly unmatched sustaining power and control (demonstrated most astonishingly in Lauridsen's O Magnum Mysterium and the end of Howells' A Spotless Rose). The only disappointment on the entire disc is Grieg's gorgeous "Ave Maris Stella" in which, for whatever reason, the men sing with a rather unblended and even wobbly sound while the women are almost entirely straight-tone. "Sing Lullaby" by Howells is a priceless gem worth several times the cost of this CD....a powerfully haunting piece performed here to utter perfection and taste. You will also find what is most assuredly the most perfect and definitive recording of "O Magnum Mysterium" to be found anywhere. The balance and length of line this incredibly gifted ensemble achieves in this too-often-performed piece will leave you breathless.

Sublimely beautiful!.......2005-02-01

Heavenly music, beautifully captured in a location with fantastic acoustics. This is music that needs to be heard on headphones or outstanding surround sound to be really appreciated. Here I am in February still listening to this CD of Xmas music... it's very calming to the soul. I can't recommend this highly enough.

Billboard Greatest Christmas Hits: 1955-Present

Average customer rating:

More holiday classics!
The Only Christmas Music I Can Tolerate
Not all songs are original...
This is my favorite Christmas album ever!
Very Good

Billboard Greatest Christmas Hits: 1955-Present
Brenda Lee , and the Chipmunks with David Seville
Manufacturer: Rhino / Wea
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Pop | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

1950s | By Decade | Pop | Styles | Music

1960s | By Decade | Pop | Styles | Music

1970s | By Decade | Pop | Styles | Music

1980s | By Decade | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Holiday Music | Compilations | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Opera & Vocal | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Pop Vocal | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Rhino Records | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music

4-for-3 Pop | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music

4-for-3 Rock | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music

4-for-3 All Music | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music

General Christmas | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music

$7 - $10 | Today's Deals | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music

Under $7 | Today's Deals | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music

Pop Vocal | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music
Similar Items:

Billboard Greatest Christmas Hits: 1935-1954
Billboard Rock N Roll Christmas
A Rock N' Roll Christmas
All-Time Greatest Christmas 1
Time-Life Music: Treasury of Christmas - Holiday Memories

ASIN: B0000032JO
Release Date: 1989-07-31

Tracks:

Jingle Bell Rock - Bobby Helms
Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree - Brenda Lee
The Chipmunk Song - Chipmunks With David Seville
The Little Drummer Boy - Harry Simone Chorale
Mary's Boy Child - Harry Belafonte
Blue Christmas - Elvis Presley
Nuttin' For Christmas - Barry Gordon
Please Come Home For Christmas - Charles Brown
White Christmas - Drifters
Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer - Elmo 'N Patsy

Customer Reviews:

More holiday classics!.......2007-01-11

Can you say Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer?! My family can. This cd was full of fun songs for the entire family. A must purchase!

The Only Christmas Music I Can Tolerate.......2004-12-23

My grandmother used to have this collection on CD when I was younger, and to this day it's really the only Christmas music I really enjoy listening to. I pretty much hate everything else, it's all very annoying, but this collection is great! It has a really great version of "White Christmas" by The Drifters and also "Grandma Got Run Over..." is a classic. It's a variety of different styles and that's what I like best about it. It's sure to please anyone at a holiday party.

Not all songs are original..........2004-11-23

Apart from what other posters have said, not all the singles here are the originals. Most notably, I found out the hard way that "Please Come For Christmas" by Charles Brown is NOT the original 1961 version, but instead a later version recorded by the same artist, and very over-produced. I was rather disappointed, as this was the main reason I bought the CD.

Other than that, the songs are all the originals as we've heard on the radio and such.....

This is my favorite Christmas album ever!.......2000-10-29

When I was in the third grade, our school chorus sang Jingle Bell Rock for the Christmas program. I wanted to learn that song so badly that my mom went out and bought this for me. I couldn't stand it! I thought that it was the wrong version. But eventually, I grew to love this album. I listened to it all the time through the holiday season, and I lost my tape. My grandma bought me a new one and the following year, I found my old one. To this day, I still listen to and love this album. If you have just one Christmas album in your holiday colection, let it be this one. However, off that note, though I'm sure none of you care, we ended up singing the same sets of songs both years I was allowed to be in chorus, and none of them were Jingle Bell Rock.

Very Good.......1999-11-26

My daughter loves this CD. When I first got it I had to make a tape copy for her so she could listen to it in her room. And know I have to get another CD for my mother. She got a CD player for Christmas last year and has been looking for this CD you are the only ones who have it. This CD is listen to every Christmas since I first found it. I think it should be a part of everyone's CD collection of holiday music.

Average customer rating:

My fellow Americans, be merry. Count your blessings for a while.
Not your average Christmas album
A Christmas Present revisited
TRACK LIST:

A Christmas Present... and Past
Paul Revere and the Raiders
Manufacturer: Koch Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Pop | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Opera & Vocal | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music
Similar Items:

Revolution!
Alias Pink Puzz
The Spirit of '67
Just Like Us!
Something Happening

ASIN: B000AXWHLW
Release Date: 2005-10-04

Tracks:

Introduction
Wear A Smile At Christmas
Jingle Bells
Brotherly Love
Rain, Sleet, Snow
Peace
Valley Forge
Dear Mr. Claus
Macy's Window
Chirstmas Spirit
A Heavy Christmas Message

Customer Reviews:

My fellow Americans, be merry. Count your blessings for a while........2006-12-18

Paul Revere and the Raiders were a popular pop-rock group in the 1960s. This CD is definitely not what I was expecting from the group. Instead of the lighthearted pop-rock I was expecting, I was "treated" to a surprisingly cynical album. The group seems to have an axe to grind against Christmas, and they took the opportunity to criticize everything that they don't like about the holiday. I especially didn't care for the song complaining about late delivered Christmas cards. Aside from the songs that are complaining about one thing or another, there is a boring instrumental titled "Peace" and an intentionally terrible version of "Jingle Bells". There is one song on the album which is actually pretty good, which is "Wear a Smile at Christmas", which complains about people not taking time to smile at Christmas. I should also mention that a Salvation Army Band appears on the album, playing very brief Christmas instrumentals in between the songs. Don't buy this album.

Not your average Christmas album.......2006-10-24

Word has it that the A&R man for the Raiders smashed this record to bits when he heard it for the first time. Ouch. Nonetheless, it manages to keep popping up. There are just enough of us who like it to get it reissued every few years. I got my first copy when I was in high school in the early nineties. I had developed a liking for the band after seeing their current touring lineup. Just about everything of theirs was out of print at the time, so I gobbled up a copy of Christmas Present from the cassette cutout bin for $3.99. While the rest of their catalog can sound bit dated, this still sounds pretty fresh. It's a bizarre concotion of holiday cheer that could have only come from the 1960's. If you're looking for crooners at Christmas, see my other reviews, but if you want something a little out of the ordinary, try it. At least most of the songs are original, and the Jingle Bells jam is certainly unique. There's only one throwaway, "Peace," but it's okay when you put the cd on and play it through. A warning: there are no singles here. This is a concept album in the truest form. Koch will hate me for this, but their reissue is a little shoddy. The title is wrong on the spine (perhaps an intentional joke? if so, it doesn't work.) and the liner notes are naked. No bonus tracks, and the cover varies enough from the original album to be noticiable to hardcore fans of the original (admittedly, I might be the only one.)I recommend the Alala version, or the Columbia release if you can save a few bucks. So I recommend this album and hope you enjoy it as much as I have over the years. Grab it while you can- this thing disappears out of print quickly! Happy Holidays to you and yours!

A Christmas Present revisited.......2005-12-07

When I bought this album, I was still in high school. I was madly in love with Charlie Coe...or was it Freddy Weller? Anyway, this I think is PR&R's only Christmas album. Intermingled with the Raiders' songs are snippets of an actual Salvation Army Band. Some of the songs are funny (Dear Mr. Claus won't you bring me a real live doll?) and some are very thoughtful .. A Heavy Christmas Message (Who took the Christ out of Christmas?)- always my favorite. I would recommend this album if you are a PR&R fan or if you just want to hear some different Christmas music.

TRACK LIST:.......2005-10-25

[1] Wear A Smile At Christmas [2] Jingle Bells [3] Brotherly Love [4] Rain, Sleet, Snow [5] Peace [6] Valley Forge [7] Dear Mr. Claus [8] Macy's Window [9] Christmas Spirit [10] A Heavy Christmas Message

Christmas Present: Music of Warmth & Celebration

Average customer rating:

Christmas Present: Music of Warmth & Celebration
Rick Braun
Manufacturer: Wea Corp
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Smooth Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

General | New Age | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music
Similar Items:

Body and Soul
Songs of the Season

ASIN: B0000DELTS
Release Date: 1994-09-20

Tracks:

The Little Drummer Boy
Bell, Book, And Candle
Christmas In Gorgonia
The Christmas Song
Jingle Blues
Far Away
Christmas Present
O Tannenbaum
It's Christmas
The Christmas Clock
Do You Hear What I Hear?
Newborn Christmas
Maybe Next Year
Grandma's Music Box

Average customer rating:

Andy Williams plus 70's Music Schmaltz
Another Christmas Masterpiece from Andy Williams
Christmas Present by Andy Wiiliams
ANDY'S "CHRISTMAS PRESENT" IS JUST THAT..
"Christmas Present"---Indeed this collection is

Christmas Present
Andy Williams
Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

Classic | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

Traditional Pop | Oldies | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

General | Musicals | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music

Traditional Vocal Pop | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music

General | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Pop Vocal | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music

$7 - $10 | Today's Deals | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music

Pop Vocal | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music

Musicals | The Sony BMG Masterworks Store | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music
ASIN: B00000253I
Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

Christmas Present
Joy To The World
O Little Town Of Bethlehem
Christmas Bells
It Came Upon A Midnight Clear
Ave Maria
O Come All Ye Faithful
Angels We Have Heard On High
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
Ave Maria
What Child Is This
I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day
The Lord's Prayer

Amazon.com

Of all the Andy Williams Christmas albums available, Christmas Present is by far his most religious collection. The release consists of thirteen tracks and all of them, with the possible exception of the title track, could be considered hymns. Like other male crooners from the 1960s, Williams was portrayed as a bit of a swinger, but here when he sings the "Ave Maria" he sounds as pious and pure as an altar boy. In fact, the sensitive take is one of his best--if the "Ave Maria" isn't proof enough, give "What Child Is This" and "O Little Town of Bethlehem" a spin. Williams picks up the tempo a little bit with "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing," "Angels We Have Heard on High," and "Joy to the World." --Steve Gdula

Customer Reviews:

Andy Williams plus 70's Music Schmaltz.......2007-06-27

I love Andy Williams' Christmas Album. It's my favorite Christmas album ever, so when I spotted a CD version of "Christmas Present," I jumped all over it. Unfortunately, while Andy's singing is still excellent, the album is troubled in spots by really bad 70's music production: "wacka wacka" guitars, heavy-handed basslines, and some hippie-dippie flute solos.

The good thing is that it doesn't persist across all the songs--the way it does with Dean Martin's later albums. Many of the songs have nicer baroquish guitars in them. For my money, I prefer the big beautiful band orchestrations of the 50's and 60's Christmas albums. If Amazon offered a half-point rating scale, I'd give this 3.5.

Another Christmas Masterpiece from Andy Williams.......2006-12-16

Andy Williams' first two Christmas albums from the 1960's are probably his most successful and best known holiday recordings. However, this beautiful 1974 effort is another masterpiece that is up to the level of the finest Christmas albums ever made. Christmas Present is a more mellow Christmas album than Andy's first two albums, and the 70's era musical arrangments and production sound a little more modern while still retaining the authentic Christmas flavor that makes Andy Williams Christmas music so great.

The result is one of the most soothing and tranquil Christmas albums of all time.

Andy focuses on a great set of religious carols here instead of the often-covered secular Christmas classics. Each one of these songs flows smooth and gentle, including "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" and "Joy to the World" which are often loud and dramatic in other versions. "Christmas Bells" is the only song that picks up the tempo at all. "O come all ye Faithful", "O little town of Bethleham", "I heard the bells on Christmas Day", and "It came upon a midnight clear" are some of the best versions of these songs you will hear anywhere. The soft, angelic voice of Andy Williams only enhances the relaxing mood of the album. If you love the easy listening style of Christmas music, this great CD belongs in your collection.

Christmas Present by Andy Wiiliams.......2003-12-17

This is by far the best CHRISTMAS album I have ever heard. I have an LP and I am looking for it on CD. AWESOME AWESOME AWESOME What else can I say.

ANDY'S "CHRISTMAS PRESENT" IS JUST THAT.........2001-12-12

Mid-December '60. I'm twelve and contentment reigns in my world because the living room is warm and Dad is in his chair-Ward Cleaver come to visit- reading the paper and sipping a brandy and the clanging and clinking coming from the kitchen tells me Mom is wrapping up, the dinner pans and dishes and glasses being directed to their designated spaces. The "Hi-Fi" is playing Christmas records. But wait! That isn't a "Hi-Fi!" That's two hundred pounds of solid cherry, encasing a brand new technological marvel: Separated sound, a sound the developers call "STEREO."

And so, within the security of this suburban holiday womb, I listen. I listen to Johnny Mathis ( his original Christmas album, the one where he's in that red sweater and holding the skis.) I listen to Bing and to Perry and to Nat and to Percy Faith. And I listen to Andy Williams.

Andy's first two Christmas albums have received insightful Amazon reviews. They remain classics. My father felt, however, in typical Ward fashion, that the secular side of the first album was too "wild." (His word. Thirty-eight years later, I still remember.) "Kay Thompson's Jingle Bells" was the most egregious transgressor. I loved it. Of course, I eventually drifted away from Andy in the mid 60's and early 70's, inevitably relegating him to the trash heap of irrelevancy. ("Hey You, Get Off Of My Cloud!")

Despite periodic seasonal listenings granted to the first two albums, I had no intention of EVER buying another Williams recording. How can you do THAT when Meat Loaf and Kansas and Boston and Rush beckon? ("Rush: This Christmas Spent With You?" Gag!) And then one day, in the early 80's, I found "Christmas Present" residing on a truck stop cassette wheel, those shrines to the quick, impulse-driven 2.99 purchase that formerly popular artists abhor, Billy Joel's "If I go cold, I won't get sold, I'll be put in the back on the discount rack" nightmare come true. It is the type of musical purchase that is dropped upside down on the counter next to the coffee and the cupcakes and the dominant thought that, "Gee, I hope she doesn't notice I'm buying Andy Williams!"

What can I say? That it's the best 2.99 I ever spent? Maybe. The album is Andy's BEST Christmas venture, I believe. What is striking to me is the originality of the arrangements. The first three cuts, "O'Come All Ye Faithful, "Angels We Have Heard On High," and "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" surprise. Rather than the usual bombastic, goose-bump seeking arrangement, we get a folk-like, guitar opening to Faithful that builds, ever so slowly, to Andy's familiar soaring climax. "Angels" opens with reserved keyboard and remains lovely and restrained throughout. "Hark" presents us with an opening that renders the hymn unrecognizable until Andy enters. Rather than detract, the arrangement makes us feel as though something we have heard hundreds of times is fresh and new. Each cut successfuly demonstrates that familiarity does not have to be synonymous with boring. Ironically, the least successful effort is the album's one original effort, the title track, "Christmas Present," a quintessential, early 70's, "Jim Webb writes a Christmas tune" mediocrity. A moving, understated, "Joy To The World," and pristine "Little Town of Bethlehem" follow, bringing the album back on course. Several other delights conclude this moving Christmas musical experience.

Andy is obviously deeply involved in these arrangements (as opposed to some of the perfunctory Christmas exhibitions I've heard recently. Shame, Vince Gill.) On a nostalgic whim I searched the offerings for Andy on Amazon. I anxiously scrolled the multitudinous offerings until finally, on page two, I found this album. The cassette has resided for twenty years in my Christmas case, the one I grabbed unfailingly each First of December and transported to my car for the holiday listening. Now I'm gonna get the CD! And at under ($$$), like the cassette twenty years ago, it may be the best ($$$)(inflation, you know) I've ever spent.

"Christmas Present"---Indeed this collection is.......2001-11-10

This wonderful album from 1974 perhaps conveys the "true" spirit of Christmas like no other recording ever has. Andy angelic Ave Maria is worth the price of admission alone. Interestingly enough, Keats Tyler (Andy's long time photographer) penned the title track "Christmas Present" and gives us another gift. Andy Williams has recorded at least eight original Chrsitmas albums (Christmas Album, 1963; Merry Christmas, 1965; Christmas with Williams Brothers, 1970; Christmas Present, 1974; Andy Williams CHristmas Show,1985; I Still Believe in Santa Clause, 1990; New Christmas Album Live, 1993; We Need a Little Christmas, 1996) over the years. All wonderful, but this is indeed the top of the list. THANK YOU ANDY!!!

Average customer rating:

Fantastic, Fantastic!

Christmas Present: Music of Warmth & Celebration
Rick Braun
Manufacturer: Atlantic / Wea
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Jazz | Styles | Music

Vocal Jazz General | Vocal Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

Smooth Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

General | New Age | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Opera & Vocal | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Pop Vocal | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music

Pop Vocal | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music
Similar Items:

Night Walk
Yours Truly
Sessions, Volume 1
Intimate Secrets
Beat Street

ASIN: B0000034CD
Release Date: 1997-10-14

Tracks:

Little Drummer Boy
Bell, Book and Candle
Christmas in Gorgonia
Christmas Song
Jingle Blues
Far Away
Christmas Present
O Tannenbaum
It's Christmas
Christmas Clock
Do You Hear What I Hear?
Newborn Christmas
Maybe Next Year
Grandma's Music Box
Sidewalk Souls

Customer Reviews:

Fantastic, Fantastic!.......2004-12-06

This is a very unique Christmas album. Some jazzy versions of standard Christmas songs are included with some songs perfect for background music while relaxing or entertaining.

Average customer rating:

Brings back my childhood Chirstmas memories
Back Home Again

Christmas Present
The Statler Brothers
Manufacturer: Polygram Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Country | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Opera & Vocal | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Pop Vocal | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music

$7 - $10 | Today's Deals | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music

Pop Vocal | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music
Similar Items:

Christmas Card
Christmas Collection: 20th Century Masters
Live & Sold Out
Bed of Roses
10th Anniversary

ASIN: B000001FCV
Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

Christmas Eve (Kodia's Theme)
Christmas Country Style
Brahms' Bethlehem Lullaby
Somewhere in the Night
Old Fashioned Christmas
No Reservation at the Inn
Mary's Sweet Smile
Whose Birthday Is Christmas?
Old Toy Trains
For Momma

Customer Reviews:

Brings back my childhood Chirstmas memories.......2005-12-05

This album is one of the Christmas memories as I have from childhood. My parents would get tired of me listening to it SO much, but it was my favorite I would play it again and again and I still love it. My parents loved it too - it was there tape after all. I would reccomend it to anyone wanting to get the old fashion country Christmas spirit. - Listening to it just makes me want to snuggle up with some hot cocoa in a log cabin and watch the fire and Christmas lights.

Back Home Again.......2000-10-18

As soon as Christmas Club checks are distributed the first week of November, I get out my Christmas music. My favorite is The Statler Brothers Christmas Present. The homegrown songs transport me back to my small town roots and bring tears of happy memories to my eyes. In the rush and jostle of city life, "An Old Fashioned Christmas" has the power to pick me up from these city streets and take me back home to Mt. Solon Virginia, a small town about twenty miles from the home of the Statlers. I need a new copy of this CD!

Average customer rating:

Christmas Carol: The Movie

Manufacturer: EMI
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Noels | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Movie Soundtracks | Soundtracks | Styles | Music

General | Soundtracks | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music
ASIN: B00005RRQ8
Release Date: 2001-01-01

Tracks:

Come Gather Round The Christmas Tree - The Tiffin Choir
Quis Est Deus - Charlotte Church
Hospital - The City Of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
Fezziwig's Jig - The City Of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
Three Kings - The Tiffin Choir
Resolution - The City Of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
What If - Kate Winslet
The Coventry Carol - The Tiffin Choir
Nos Galan (Deck The Halls) - The Tiffin Choir
Scrooge's Theme - The City Of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
Marley's Ghost - The City Of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
Scrooge Awakes - The City Of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
It's The Heart That Matters Most - Charlotte Church
The Holly & The Ivy - The Tiffin Choir
The Reading Of The Will - The City Of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
The Ghost Of Christmas Present - The City Of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
Dickens Arrives - The City Of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra
Cradle Lullaby - The Tiffin Choir

Average customer rating:

The Spirit Of Christmas Present

Manufacturer: Nimbus Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Waltzes | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music

Preludes | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Sacred & Religious | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Noels | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Movie Soundtracks | Soundtracks | Styles | Music

General | Soundtracks | Styles | Music

Holiday Music | Compilations | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Opera & Vocal | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music

Opera & Vocal | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music
ASIN: B0000037IL
Release Date: 1996-09-15

Tracks:

Shout The Glad Tidings - Kansas City Chorale/Charles Bruffy
O Come, All Ye Faithful - Huw Tregelles Williams/Fanfare Trumpeters Of The Welsh Guards/BBC Welsh Chorus/John Hugh Thomas
In Dulci Jubilo, BWV 751 - Kevin Bowyer
Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day - Huw Tregelles Williams/Chris Stock/Mark Walker/BBC Welsh Chorus/John Hugh Thomas
The Skater's Waltz - The Gulbenkian Orchestra/Michel Sweierczewski
Love Came Down At Christmas - James Higdon/Kansas City Choral/Charles Bruffy
I Saw Three Ships - Kansas City Chorale/Charles Bruffy
In The Bleak Mid-Winter - Christ Church Cathedral Choir/Stephen Darlington
Wachet Auf Ruft Uns Die Stimme, BWV 645 - Kevin Bowyer
The First Nowell - Huw Tregelles Williams/BBC Welsh Chorus/John Hugh Thomas
Fant On 'Greensleeves' - English String Orchestra/William Boughton
'Silent Night' - Pamela Williamson/Lyra Pringle Pherigo/Wesley Kelly
'Walking in the Air' - Kevin Bowyer
Once In Royal David's City - Huw Tregelles Williams/Fanfare Trumpeters Of The Welsh Guards/BBC Welsh Chorus/John Hugh Thomas
The Holy Infant's Lullaby - James Higdon/Kansas City Chorale/Charles Bruffy
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing - Huw Tregelles Williams/Fanfare Trumpeters Of The Welsh Guards/BBC Welsh Chorus/John Hugh Thomas

Average customer rating:

We celebrate the day a King was born.
The better of the two Merle Christmas CDs
A Christmas Present

A Christmas Present
Merle Haggard
Manufacturer: Curb Special Markets
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Country | Styles | Music

Honky-Tonk | Country | Styles | Music

General | Traditional Country | Country | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Opera & Vocal | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

Pop Vocal | Holiday | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

General Christmas | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music

$7 - $10 | Today's Deals | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music

Pop Vocal | Holiday Music | Special Features | Music

4-for-3 Country | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music

4-for-3 Pop | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music

4-for-3 All Music | 4-for-3 Music | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Goin Home for Christmas
Christmas With Buck
Christmas Shopping
20th Century Masters - The Christmas Collection: The Best of Loretta Lynn
It's Christmas Time

ASIN: B000000CVI
Release Date: 1990-08-16

Tracks:

If We Make It Through December
Santa Claus And Popcorn
Bobby Wants A Puppy Dog For Christmas
Daddy Won't Be Home For Christmas
Grandma's Christmas Card
White Christmas
Silver Bells
Winter Wonderland
Silent Night
Jingle Bells

Amazon.com

Christmas wasn't always the easiest time of year when Merle Haggard was growing up in Oklahoma. Money was tight and the elements were harsh, but faith helped the family get through. That's exactly the sense the country legend puts across on this holiday collection. Hard times are chronicled on songs like "Daddy Won't Be Home for Christmas" and "If We Make it Through December," but joy is found when the smallest of pleasures ("Grandma's Homemade Christmas Card") saves the day. --David Sprague

Customer Reviews:

We celebrate the day a King was born........2006-12-07

This Christmas album by Merle Haggard was originally released in 1973. The first half features new songs written by Merle, the second half features traditional Christmas songs. The album's highlight is Hag's classic #1 Country hit "If We Make It Through December". The rest of his original songs aren't all that memorable. The older songs are decently done, but not done in a way to set them apart from the countless other versions of "White Christmas" and "Jingle Bells". But the CD is arguably worth getting just to have "If We Make It Through December".

The better of the two Merle Christmas CDs.......2004-12-02

This CD gets released over and over with different names and the songs in different orders. I consider it a must because it's got the best version of "Silver Bells". I collect Christmas CDs and make Christmas CDs for family, and so I've got a dozen versions and Merle's version has the best pacing and arrangement, a classic. (The other Merle holiday CD available through Amazon does not contain "Silver Bells".) Then, of course, it's got the other classic "If We Make It Through December".

A Christmas Present.......1999-12-10

Amazon was the only place I could find this CD by Merle Haggard. The music on this CD brings back fond memories of Christmas past. My mom would play this album all through the holidays and we knew every word to every song. I am so happy to have it again so that now I can play it for my daughter. Merle Haggard is very talented and this album contains some of his best. Take my advice, if you love country music, buy this album! You'll be glad you did.

Music Album:

Music Album