I bought my first Christmas CD of the season. (It happened to be on sale at Target last week). This is the latest release in the ongoing Mannheim Steamroller Christmas collection. Just when you thought Chip Davis has covered every Christmas song there is, both sacred and secular, out comes a new one.
The problem with Mannheim Steamroller is that so much of their product is, for lack of a better word, too "big" for this format. The sound can be completely overpowering in an Easy Listening/Standards setting which can make for a hard time blending them in to establish a flow in a music set.
Of the 12 new tracks, the three vocals would be fine for radio airplay - Johnny Mathis on "The Christmas Song," Gene Nery on "Above The Northern Lights," and Olivia Newton-John on "Christmas Lullaby." The latter two are Chip Davis original compositions, and Mathis and Olivia have both contributed to past Mannheim releases.
I can also recommend the instrumentals "It Came Upon The Midnight Clear," "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas," and another Chip Davis original, "Catching Snowflakes On Your Tongue," which is reminiscent of his "Traditions Of Christmas" from the second album.
The remaining tracks are typical Mannheim grand-scale monsters. Track 9 may be listed as "Frosty The Snowman," but... I don't know.
To this day, my favorite Mannheim songs remain "Stille Nacht" from the first album, and "Still Still Still" from the second (A Fresh Aire Christmas).
The problem with Mannheim Steamroller is that so much of their product is, for lack of a better word, too "big" for this format. The sound can be completely overpowering in an Easy Listening/Standards setting which can make for a hard time blending them in to establish a flow in a music set.
Of the 12 new tracks, the three vocals would be fine for radio airplay - Johnny Mathis on "The Christmas Song," Gene Nery on "Above The Northern Lights," and Olivia Newton-John on "Christmas Lullaby." The latter two are Chip Davis original compositions, and Mathis and Olivia have both contributed to past Mannheim releases.
I can also recommend the instrumentals "It Came Upon The Midnight Clear," "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas," and another Chip Davis original, "Catching Snowflakes On Your Tongue," which is reminiscent of his "Traditions Of Christmas" from the second album.
The remaining tracks are typical Mannheim grand-scale monsters. Track 9 may be listed as "Frosty The Snowman," but... I don't know.
To this day, my favorite Mannheim songs remain "Stille Nacht" from the first album, and "Still Still Still" from the second (A Fresh Aire Christmas).