The Spirit of Christmas

So happy to have finally found this gem of an album. I love Chuck’s gravelly voice.

Being a native of the DC area this is my favorite Christmas CD. "Merry Christmas Baby" always gets me in the spirit but Chuck's very rare version of "This Christmas" is by far my favorite cut. No other Christmas song by ANY ARTIST can compare to this. My wife & I just the other day agreed that we would probrably bust out in tears if we ever have a chance to see Chuck sing it live during the holidays. This is just a rediculously beautiful cut.

I came to this album entry expecting lots of positive reviews and hoping for some suggestions from others for other X-mas albums like it. Nope, only two very lukewarm reviews. This album is terrific. I have had it for a couple of years and whenever I put it on when we have people over for holiday parties, they start grooving and eventually ask me. "Who is this?" If you like a light funky Go-Go beat but still want to hear some nice Christmas tunes, buy this album. There isn't a bad song on it, in my opinion. But the 30 second clips should give you a good idea if it is your style or not. I only wish I could find more Christmas albums that are as fun to listen to as this one. If you are feeling Christmasey, but are sick of Bing Crosby. This is a must. Another good one if you like Blues, is B.B. King's Christmas album. Doesn't get you dancing around the tree while hanging decorations like Chuck's album here, but it is nice blues and great background music for a party or get together.

I finally found that song from "Christmas Vacation" (the one with Chevy Chase) when he is stuck in the attic and watches old movies, and Ray Charles sings this incredibly poignant and haunting song, just before Chevy is dumped out of the attic by his wife. This version is not by Ray Charles, but hey, it's Christmas Eve and I really like this song and for 99 cents, I can have it tomorrow!

this music isn't very enjoyable... but he's a decent singer so I'll give it 3 stars.