As advertised, staple artists of the former album-oriented rock radio format kick out the jams for Christmas. It's a partial benefit album, in that "portions" of the proceeds will go to the Port Authority World Trade Disaster Survivors Fund and the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame Education Fund. Fans of the format will enjoy this 2002 disc, and they'll eat up the liner notes written by the artists for each song. There's not a lot of uptempo stuff here, mostly ballads, with some exceptions. The Eddie Money/Ronnie Spector duet "Everybody Loves Christmas" is on this, along with what appears to be Greg Lake's third remake of "I Believe in Father Christmas," this one dominated by a full orchestra. His buddy Keith Emerson, surprisingly, goes gospel on "Silent Night." Styx's "All I Want" is a lot more relaxed than a lot of their stuff, leading in with a bit of Gary Glitter and copping just a smidge of Beach Boys on the bridge. Father Guido Sarducci's "Santa's Lament" makes another appearance here. REO Speedwagon's "I Believe in Santa Claus" actually sounds like a Michael Jackson impersonator in spots. John Waite's "All I Want for Christmas" has the now-dated simile, "The snow fell like cocaine...." Tommy Shaw of Damn Yankees and Night Ranger's Jack Blades duet on "12 Days of Christmas," and there are other entries from Felix Cavaliere and Survivor. Click to grab from Amazon as disc or download.
A Classic Rock Christmas, various artists (Sanctuary)
As advertised, staple artists of the former album-oriented rock radio format kick out the jams for Christmas. It's a partial benefit album, in that "portions" of the proceeds will go to the Port Authority World Trade Disaster Survivors Fund and the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame Education Fund. Fans of the format will enjoy this 2002 disc, and they'll eat up the liner notes written by the artists for each song. There's not a lot of uptempo stuff here, mostly ballads, with some exceptions. The Eddie Money/Ronnie Spector duet "Everybody Loves Christmas" is on this, along with what appears to be Greg Lake's third remake of "I Believe in Father Christmas," this one dominated by a full orchestra. His buddy Keith Emerson, surprisingly, goes gospel on "Silent Night." Styx's "All I Want" is a lot more relaxed than a lot of their stuff, leading in with a bit of Gary Glitter and copping just a smidge of Beach Boys on the bridge. Father Guido Sarducci's "Santa's Lament" makes another appearance here. REO Speedwagon's "I Believe in Santa Claus" actually sounds like a Michael Jackson impersonator in spots. John Waite's "All I Want for Christmas" has the now-dated simile, "The snow fell like cocaine...." Tommy Shaw of Damn Yankees and Night Ranger's Jack Blades duet on "12 Days of Christmas," and there are other entries from Felix Cavaliere and Survivor. Click to grab from Amazon as disc or download.
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