A Very Special Christmas 2, various artists (A&M)

Five years passed before the Special Olympics tried to surpass their initial achievement with this 1992 album. They didn't, actually, but it wasn't for lack of trying, given the artist roster. Still, we could have done without sappy old Debbie Gibson, Luther Vandross and Michael Bolton, and Randy Travis' "Jingle Bell Rock" was mainly a sop to the country market. Still, we do have to give props to the duets: Darlene Love and Ronnie Spector on "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree," Bonnie Raitt and Charles Brown on his classic "Merry Christmas Baby" and even Cyndi Lauper with Frank Sinatra on "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town." Then we have Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers with "Christmas All Over Again," Paul Young in a fine version of Stevie Wonder's "What Christmas Means To Me" and Jon Bon Jovi and Run DMC offering new performances, the former's "Please Come Home For Christmas" being the subject of an over-shown video with Cindy Crawford. Aretha Franklin provides the diva moment with "O Christmas Tree," while Sinead O'Connor gives us a non-Christmas Dylan song, "I Believe In You." Also on hand are Extreme, Nancy and Ann Wilson, Boys II Men, Tevin Campbell, Vanessa Williams and Wilson Phillips.