1. Winter Wonderland
2. This Time Of The Year
3. Marshmallow World
4. A Holly Jolly Christmas
5. I'll Be Home For Christmas
6. Here Comes Santa Claus
7. All I Want For Christmas Is You
8. (There's No Place Like) Home For The Holidays
9. White Christmas
10. Jingle Bell Rock
11. Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
12. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
ARTIST SITE
PURCHASE FROM CRACKER BARREL
Oddly enough, in my little town, Cracker Barrel actually carries more CDs than pretty much anybody else in town. Such is the state of the retail music industry, all of the other stores that once featured huge music sections have either cut back to only a few of the best sellers or (mostly) have stopped selling music altogether. Be that as it may, Cracker Barrel is the only place where you can score a copy of this absolute gem from Country singer Mandy Barnett. And if you're one of those people who says they just don't make records like they used to, Mandy aims to prove you wrong.
Mandy, who some may recall first made her name while still in her teens portraying Patsy Cline in the biographical stage show, set out to make a real old-fashioned Christmas album...just like the kind we used to know. I've heard the claim before, so count me among the skeptical. But Mandy completely pulled it off with "Winter Wonderland".
First, she gathered the right players, including many who had played on some of those late 50s-early 60s Christmas albums we today consider the classics. Then came the material and, here, Mandy was especially brilliant. She chose not just the standards from that earlier time--like "White Christmas", "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" and "Winter Wonderland"--but also songs from that era that were new then but destined to become classics (like "Jingle Bell Rock", "This Time Of The Year", "Home For The Holidays" and "A Holly Jolly Christmas"). She also included one more recent selection which may or may not yet be regarded as a standard but is bound to get there, Vince Vance's "All I Want For Christmas Is You".
The album is lush with strings and sleigh bells, and choral arrangements (I think the background singers were really the touch that firmly cemented that nostalgic feeling), with just the right touch of steel guitar and fiddle so as to leave no doubt that this is a Nashville production. Every detail is meticulous in recreating the grand Christmas productions of a bygone era. The sound is exquisitely precise in it's recreation. It's literally like a picture print by Courier & Ives. And yet, it's not some lifeless carbon copy; "Winter Wonderland" is fresh and filled with holiday spirit.
Finally, Mandy's vocals are neigh on perfect. It's hard not to close your eyes and hear what might have been had Patsy Cline ever recorded a Christmas album, but Mandy can stand on her own as she does on "This Time Of The Year" in the video above. My personal favorite, here, is "All I Want For Christmas Is You" which is easily the best version of that song since Lisa Layne's original take with Vince Vance back in 1989. But no doubt you'll find your own favorites. Check the sound clips at Cracker Barrel.
If you were around in the 50s and 60s (and even the 70s) and you're looking for something that puts that original jingle back into your Christmas bells, Mandy Barnett's "Winter Wonderland" is the perfect prescription. A little Bing, a little Perry, and a little Mandy Barnett and you'll be decking the halls with a whole lot more FaLaLaLaLa than you've had in years.
2. This Time Of The Year
3. Marshmallow World
4. A Holly Jolly Christmas
5. I'll Be Home For Christmas
6. Here Comes Santa Claus
7. All I Want For Christmas Is You
8. (There's No Place Like) Home For The Holidays
9. White Christmas
10. Jingle Bell Rock
11. Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
12. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
ARTIST SITE
PURCHASE FROM CRACKER BARREL
Oddly enough, in my little town, Cracker Barrel actually carries more CDs than pretty much anybody else in town. Such is the state of the retail music industry, all of the other stores that once featured huge music sections have either cut back to only a few of the best sellers or (mostly) have stopped selling music altogether. Be that as it may, Cracker Barrel is the only place where you can score a copy of this absolute gem from Country singer Mandy Barnett. And if you're one of those people who says they just don't make records like they used to, Mandy aims to prove you wrong.
Mandy, who some may recall first made her name while still in her teens portraying Patsy Cline in the biographical stage show, set out to make a real old-fashioned Christmas album...just like the kind we used to know. I've heard the claim before, so count me among the skeptical. But Mandy completely pulled it off with "Winter Wonderland".
First, she gathered the right players, including many who had played on some of those late 50s-early 60s Christmas albums we today consider the classics. Then came the material and, here, Mandy was especially brilliant. She chose not just the standards from that earlier time--like "White Christmas", "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" and "Winter Wonderland"--but also songs from that era that were new then but destined to become classics (like "Jingle Bell Rock", "This Time Of The Year", "Home For The Holidays" and "A Holly Jolly Christmas"). She also included one more recent selection which may or may not yet be regarded as a standard but is bound to get there, Vince Vance's "All I Want For Christmas Is You".
The album is lush with strings and sleigh bells, and choral arrangements (I think the background singers were really the touch that firmly cemented that nostalgic feeling), with just the right touch of steel guitar and fiddle so as to leave no doubt that this is a Nashville production. Every detail is meticulous in recreating the grand Christmas productions of a bygone era. The sound is exquisitely precise in it's recreation. It's literally like a picture print by Courier & Ives. And yet, it's not some lifeless carbon copy; "Winter Wonderland" is fresh and filled with holiday spirit.
Finally, Mandy's vocals are neigh on perfect. It's hard not to close your eyes and hear what might have been had Patsy Cline ever recorded a Christmas album, but Mandy can stand on her own as she does on "This Time Of The Year" in the video above. My personal favorite, here, is "All I Want For Christmas Is You" which is easily the best version of that song since Lisa Layne's original take with Vince Vance back in 1989. But no doubt you'll find your own favorites. Check the sound clips at Cracker Barrel.
If you were around in the 50s and 60s (and even the 70s) and you're looking for something that puts that original jingle back into your Christmas bells, Mandy Barnett's "Winter Wonderland" is the perfect prescription. A little Bing, a little Perry, and a little Mandy Barnett and you'll be decking the halls with a whole lot more FaLaLaLaLa than you've had in years.
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