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Title: melancholy but beautiful collection
Review: This alternative/folk compilation won't appeal to folks who like their Christmas albums to be full of mistletoe and ho-ho-ho, but for those who'd like some thoughtfully beautiful songs to balance the frantic holiday mood, this CD offers a nice variety of new and old-but-unusual ("Gaudete"). A few selections are downright cheerful (Barenaked Ladies' bouncy "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" and Lily Frost's delicate "Skating on the River"), but the spirit of most of the pieces is more in keeping with the ancient concept that the winter solstice is a time for a kind of peaceful melancholy. If your collection is heavy on the Jingle Bells, get this to round it out (but be warned: one track, "The Cat Carol," goes beyond melancholy -- it's just sad). Even aside from the long story (amusing on the first listen, but hardly a classic) by Stuart McLean (who sounds like Jimmy Stewart would if he were Canadian), this CD offers almost 50 minutes of lovely, unique holiday music.
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