 NPR 's Ken Tucker described the album as a " glossy but heartfelt work " and <unk> compared its contrasting philosophy to Nick Lowe 's Quality Street : A <unk> Selection for All the Family , both of which he described as " will put you in a holiday mood " . Matt <unk> of PopMatters gave the album a generally favorable review , claiming that " Clarkson plays it safe and spends too much time showing off her upper register , but Wrapped in Red is a warm and romantic addition to the Christmas pop <unk> , " adding " Wrapped in Red doesn ’ t need edge ; it ’ s just dynamic and varied enough to be satisfying , and it ’ s light @-@ years better than any of the whitewashed Christmas crap Simon Cowell has inflicted on the world " . Sarah Rodman of The Boston Globe gave a favorable review , particularly lauding " Underneath the Tree " , and described Clarkson 's rendering the Christmas standards as " fairly straight " . She added , " She starts gently on " Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas " before belting out the money notes . She <unk> <unk> through the soulful favorite " Please Come Home for Christmas ( Bells Will Be Ringing ) " and hangs by the piano for a <unk> “ White Christmas . " Newsday 's music columnist Glenn Gamboa wrote that " Clarkson handles it all expertly — hitting remarkably high notes on " Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas " and swinging <unk> on " Baby It 's Cold Outside " with Dunn . The new songs make Wrapped in Red a real gift , as the title track and " Underneath the Tree " channel the Phil Spector Christmas albums ; and " 4 <unk> " somehow blends " Stronger " and " Santa Baby " . Reviewing for HitFix , Melinda Newman gave the album an " A " rating , praising Clarkson 's vocal performances and noting that she and Kurstin " have clearly studied legendary Christmas albums of <unk> — most notably Spector 's A Christmas Gift For You and Andy Williams ' Merry Christmas — to <unk> recreate Christmas standards , as well as craft new ones in the image of those sets . " Chris <unk> of Slate declared Wrapped in Red as the best of 2013 's new Christmas records , noting for its vintage sound . He also observed that its five original tracks , most notably " Wrapped in Red " and " Underneath the Tree " , have reasonable odds of remaining in the <unk> rotation five years from now . In his review for The New York Times , Jon Caramanica wrote that Clarkson is very likely the only singer working in pop with a real possibility of creating a modern holiday classic along the lines of Carey 's " All I Want for Christmas Is You . " and remarked that her takes on familiar songs , however accomplished , are " also faithful in the way that someone <unk> of pop history would be . " 
