counting 'em down: the first seven

did someone call for a favorite christmas album countdown? well, today's your lucky day because starting now, i'll be counting down my favorites every day all the way until christmas day.

so, when you have over 100 holiday albums in your possession, as i do, you can imagine there's quite a bit from which to choose. so much so that the plans for this little countdown started out as my top ten favorite. well, after listing several more than ten off the top my head, i thought i should expand it to a top 15. as i began going through my collection i realized that i should expand it to a top 20. with more digging it expanded to a top 25,  and after even more digging, i figured i should just see how many i ended up with and use that as my favorites list.

i mention all of that to explain why you're getting a top 31 favorite albums countdown. it's an unconventional number sure, but after all, it's my blog so my rules. now, let's get to how this all will work.

each day, i'll be listing a handful of my favorite christmas albums with a brief commentary of why each album was so selected. following this will be a selection of one or two of my favorite songs from that album. it's going to be quite a bit of music ,so i hope you're stored up on christmas cookies and egg nog. brief explanation completed, let's start with the first album, moving up from number 31 (cause, you know, it's a countdown):

31.  glee, the music: the christmas album vol. 1

there are four volumes of christmas music performed by the kids from the television show glee. they're all very good, but i would have to say that the first album is my favorite. great singing, playful arrangements make this an enjoyable experience all the way around as evidenced by my postings  earlier this month of the "klaine" duet of baby, it's cold outside as well as the ensemble cast performing we need a little christmas. here's a third song that actually combines two popular christmas songs into one fun mashup.

deck the rooftop - glee cast ensemble

30. kylie christmas - kylie minogue

this is actually a new album in my collection, having been released just this year. i love ms. minogue's pop stylings in general, and she has used them to great effect with this christmas album. it's one that i can see climbing up the ranks of my list of favorites as the years go by. as proof of that prediction, i had a difficult time picking which songs i would post. that's the reason you're getting two from this one.

every day's like christmas
only you (feat. james corden)

29.  it's the thought - twila paris

long time readers of this blog will know that i'm a recovering evangelical christian (as well as a lapsed catholic. i'm thinking organized religion may not be my thing). still, if there's one good thing that came out of that experience, it's my exposure to what was then called contemporary christian music and to one singer in particular (but more on her later in the week). this album selection is the first of several from that genre i will be posting. it is a lovely, gentle album with both original and classic devotional songs interspersed. the song i've selected, which is the title track of the album, conveys the two adjectives i've used quite well.

it's the thought 

28.  cool yule - bette midler

leave it to the divine miss m to produce a christmas album that can shift effortlessly from jazzy beats to gentle ballads. equally fun and moving, i thoroughly enjoy this album every time i put it on. here are two great examples of this delightful duality (one of which is a version of one of her most popular songs and it fits very nicely into the themes of this holiday season).

cool yule
from a distance (christmas version)

27.  a christmas album - james taylor

it likely comes as no surprise that an album by james taylor would find it's way onto one of my favorites lists. what may be surprising is how far down the countdown this album is. don't get me wrong, this is a very good album, but for this one james decided to go pretty conventional. it has pretty traditional arrangements of traditional christmas standards. truth be told, if it were any other artist, the album might not have made this list, but it's not any other artist. it's james taylor and so of course he's here, and with him comes a very, very nice song.

who comes this night

26.  yule swing! - anna wilson

this album joined my collection a couple of years back, and in all candor, i'd never heard of the artist before its appearing in my amazon.com suggestion list. well, clearly amazon knows me pretty well because this collection of jazz/big band influenced holiday songs has become a most welcome part of my collection. it's the kind of album you definitely want playing at a christmas party for grown-ups. unfortunately, i can't find a full song from this album on the internet to link to, so i highly recommend you seek it out yourself to enjoy. to make it easy for you here's a link to the album on that retail site that brought it first to my attention. you can even hear some samplings before you purchase. my particular favorites are the title track, christmas is coming to town, and mrs. claus.

25. come darkness, come light: twelve songs of christmas - mary chapin carpenter

the last album for today's portion of the countdown comes from an artist who embodies every sense of the word.  the thoughtful lyrics, the beautiful imagery, the peaceful acoustic arrangements, and a reverential performance are all here. this is an album that envelops you and holds you close. if the previous album is a great selection for your next holiday soiree, this would be one that would be perfect listening to by yourself in front of a fireplace, reflecting on the powerful message of the season. you heard one song from this album last week. the song selected today is the title track, and well, it is as beautiful a christmas song as you could ask for.

come darkness, come light