Who doesn’t love Christmas music?!?!??? (Well, besides my ex-husband, but he was a grinch!) I ADORE Christmas music! I don’t care who is singing it–The Partridge Family, The Brady Bunch, Jeff Foxworthy—-doesn’t matter—I’ll listen to it! I am mystified when I meet people who do not even OWN a Christmas album (CD)! What is that all about!??!
So, for those of you who are unaware of the amazing and wonderful world of Christmas music, here is my Top Ten All-Time Favorite Christmas Album List:
1) A Christmas to Remember, Amy Grant – Since Amy Grant is my all-time favorite singer, it stands to reason that she would be on the top of my Top Ten List! I LOVE this album. Since it first came out in 2007, it has been our tradition to grab this CD on our way out the door to my family’s Thanksgiving dinner. On the way home, we pop this CD in and it starts the Christmas season for us! My favorite song the CD is Welcome to Our World. I LOVE this song about the birth of Christ. Til’ the Season Comes Round Again is also a favorite. If you only purchase one Christmas CD this year, make it this one!
2) The Magic of Christmas With Children, Nat King Cole – I have been listening to this album for over 40 years (I was quite small when I started listening to Christmas music!). I remember how sad it made me that Santa Claus would ever forget a little boy (The Little Boy That Santa Claus Forgot) and how excited I got that I knew how to say “Merry Christmas” in Italian (Buon Natale—I tease my daughter, Natalie that I named her after this song so I could say “Christmas” in Italian all year round!) And who wouldn’t be able to smile to hear about The Happiest Christmas Tree? (I always imagined mine were the happiest!). This particular album is no longer available, but there are a few different compilation CD’s that include these songs. Buy it!! And since only Nat can sing the Christmas Song, this CD is a plus!
3) Christmas Album, Amy Grant – Did I mention that I’m a BIG Amy Grant fan?!? Well, if you missed it, I am! So, you are likely to find Amy Grant on here more than once! This was Amy’s original foray into the Christmas realm and it was a hit! From Tennessee Christmas to Love Has Come to Heirlooms, this album is full of awesome Christmas music. And who could ever forget the fabulous Emmanuel?!?! I feel Amy also has the best rendition of Oh, Little Town of Bethlehem ever recorded! This album makes me want to move to Tennessee and buy a log cabin to spend Christmas at! (Which is kind of ironic, since she recorded this in a studio in Aspen, Colorado….I live in Colorado!)
4) Home For Christmas, Amy Grant – All right, all right…this is the last time Amy will be showing up on my list!! Come on…this is the album with Breath of Heaven on it! It has to be in the Top Ten. I love the mix of old (Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas) and new (Grown Up Christmas List). I have always enjoyed hearing and learning new Christmas songs, but you just can’t beat an old standard like O Come All Ye Faithful. Amy does Christmas almost better than anyone I’ve ever heard. (And by the way…I got the chance to actually meet Amy [and her husband, some guy named Vince Gill] in 2008. I was honored to take pictures at one of their fundraising concerts. Dream of a lifetime!)
5) Christmastime, Michael W. Smith – Ahhh….Michael W. Smith….the man is a genius! The way he can arrange a song is beyond brilliant! I could listen to him for hours. The title song, Christmastime, is one of my all-time favorite Christmas songs EVER! Throw in Happiest Christmas, The Christmas Waltz and Welcome to Our World and you have a Christmas album worth it’s weight in gold.
6) Christmas At Home, Donny Osmond – OK…I know I’m going to lose a few of you here, but just hold on before you close the tab! This is a great album! Even my kids like it (Sorry, girls!). I must tell you that I was supposed to be Mrs. Donny Osmond and then some chick with the name “Debbie” stole him from me….I’ve never quite gotten over it! So, it’s only natural that he should be on my list. Oh, Holy Night is my #1, all-time favorite Christmas song, and when he sings it, I can just picture him singing it for me! Baby, What You Goin’ to Be, A Soldier’s King and Mary, Did You Know are 3 absolutely wonderful songs about the reason for Christmas–Jesus! I love, love, love these songs! I also like his rendition of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, even though he included that girl “Debbie” singing on it, along with all of his sons. (She’s got an all right voice, but I think I could have done it better…lol.) I urge you to give this one a listen and see if it doesn’t end up on your favorite Christmas album list! (I DARE you!! I double dog dare you!)
7) The Sweetest Gift, Trisha Yearwood – I am a Trisha fan, so it was a no-brainer for me to purchase her first Christmas album. Little did I know I would fall in love with it! It Wasn’t His Child is by far the best song on this album. We always see songs about Jesus and Mary, but we hardly ever see a song about Joseph! This song really makes you think about Joseph’s role in the life of our Savior. It tugs at the heartstrings every time! Take a Walk Through Bethlehem is a reminder about what Christmas is all about–it’s not the gifts or the trees or the parties….it’s about what happened in Bethlehem over 2,000 years ago. And Reindeer Boogie is just plain ole’ Christmas fun! A few of the songs are very “twangy”, so if you aren’t a country fan–beware! The album is still worth it though.
8 ) White Christmas, Martina McBride – Martina’s amazing voice makes this Christmas album a must-have! The album is full of the old traditional songs that we’ve all grown up with and love. If you are looking for a traditional, yet up to date Christmas album, this one is it. Martina’s powerhouse of a voice just belts out the standards like Do You Hear What I Hear? and O, Holy Night. I could listen to this album over and over again. Even if you aren’t a country music fan, I think you will find it enjoyable.
9) Because It’s Christmas, Barry Manilow – OK…if I didn’t lose you at Donny, I might lose you here, but please stick me! I have been a Manilow fan since Mandy came out back in the day. I fell in love with his voice at the age of 13 years old and have been in love with it ever since. You cannot deny that the man has some chops! The man could sing the alphabet and make me fall in love! If for no other song than It’s Just Another New Year’s Eve this album is awesome. I also love his version of Carol of the Bells/The Bells of Christmas. It’s full of classics with Manilow’s own twist on them. Trust me!!
10) This one was tough because there are so many great Christmas albums out there! From Harry Connick, Jr’s When My Heart Finds Christmas to Mariah Carey’s Jesus Born on This Day (brings tears to my eyes every time I hear it!) to Bing Crosby’s White Christmas there are just too many to choose from! Amy Grant does have one more Christmas album, but since I feel there were other Christmas albums more deserving, I didn’t put it on. So for number 10, I’m going to leave it up to your imagination!
There you have it!! My Top Ten list of Christmas music! It was hard to decide, but I’m happy with my choices.
Day 1 of Advent
Thursday is actually the first day of Advent, so I am going to suggest activities for you to do every day. I am going to make suggestions the day before so you have time to prepare. For tomorrow, December 1st, I want you to go out and purchase a new Christmas album!! Then take it home and listen to it! Or better yet….listen to it on the way home!
A Little Bit of Monica In Your Life 
My favorite album is Christmas by Jaci Velasquez
I think I have hers, Tammy!
Laughed about Amy Grant! Love her too! Your list is wonderful! Our favorite, and it goes back to when I was a little girl, is A Merry Mancini Christmas. Henry Mancini did it in like the 70’s and it’s all the classics.
Now I have not heard that one, Melissa! I may need to find it. I love all the old ones too. I actually have a lot of my mom’s old Christmas LP’s…they include Johnny Mathis, Perry Como, the Ray Conniff Singers and Dean Martin. When I hear them, it just takes me back to when I was a child!