FROM THE ARCHIVES: HANG YOUR BOOTSY BY THE TREE:

Rockin' — and swingin' and swayin' — around the Christmas tree: Best holiday CDs (Patrick MacDonald, 11/23/06, Seattle Times)

"Christmas Is 4 Ever," Bootsy Collins (Shout). Have a funky Christmas with Bootsy, baby! He brings his own brand of fun to the holidays with this seamless, 13-song collection that plays like a seasonal audio spectacular, with plenty of humor, sentimentality, nostalgia and his usual winking sexiness. "I'm coming down your chimney" and "All lit up by the Christmas tree" take on new meaning when delivered with Bootsy's familiar oily charm. Snoop Dogg is as funny as ever as guest star on the new song, "Happy Holidaze." Some other guests phone in their performances — literally. Those phone messages sound out of place, but the rest of the disc is a kick. [...]

"How Cool Is That Christmas," Rachael Ray (Epic). She's everywhere! So it's no surprise that Ms. Ubiquitous has a seasonal product in the stores. This compilation is pretty good and has lots of variety, with cuts from Elvis Presley, Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra, Aretha Franklin and Doris Day. There's jazz from Jane Monheit, humor from Buster Poindexter, kitsch via the Bing Crosby/David Bowie oddity, "Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth," and a silly song strictly for kids, Lou Monte's "Dominick the Donkey." [...]

"Elvis Christmas," Elvis Presley (RCA/Sony). What's Christmas without Elvis? And with this new collection, you get it all on one CD — the 1957 "Elvis' Christmas Album" and 1971's "Elvis Sings the Wonderful World of Christmas," 23 cuts in all. The songs have been digitally remastered and sound great. Merry Christmas, baby!

[originally posted: 12/24/06]

Posted by Orrin Judd at December 25, 2007 12:00 AM