Published on Dec 7, 1997
With the holiday season quickly approaching, I’ve found myself
drawn to the music surrounding the season. Problem is, I admit I’m
quite the fuddy-duddy when it comes to Christmas music. I love the
Harry Simeone Chorale’s rendition of “The Little Drummer Boy,” Bing
Crosby belting out “White Christmas,” and so many others that I
grew up with (that haven’t made it to CD). And while I like some of
the material on the
A Very Special Christmas series, some of the magic is just
lacking.
Then, there’s Mariah Carey (making her fourth appearance on “The
Daily Vault”‘s pages). I picked up her 1994 release
Merry Christmas for 20 cents at a used record sale this
summer – ‘course, I didn’t know I had bought a bootleg tape. With a
DJ job staring me in the face, I thought I’d better listen to it to
make sure it was of good quality to play at the party.
And though I ripped Carey a few months ago (and have the flame
mail to prove it), I have to admit that I did enjoy this album more
than I thought I would. More often than not, Carey’s vocals
seemperfect for the songs she’s singing.
Her take on “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” is a very
enjoyable one, and one where she tampers her multi-octave range to
deliver the message of the song. And deliver it she does. A similar
number, “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” quickly shows why it’s
one of the more popular songs on the album.
Now, for the admission. Last time I reviewed Carey, I was
particularly hard on the way she sang diva-like, that it seemed to
be more of a show-off work for her vocals. Well, when you hear the
way she hits the high notes on “O Holy Night,” you’ll appreciate
her range. It brought a tear to my eye when I heard it. (Yes, JB,
there is a Santa Claus… I found a Mariah Carey song I really
like!)
I’ll admit I don’t think the world needed a dance version of
“Joy To The World,” but seeing that I have a hard enough time
appreciating some of the modern Christmas music, I won’t criticize
the decision to do the song in this style. (I guess it’s not
that bad a version, anyway.)
The only real criticism I have of
Merry Christmas is Carey’s attempt to sing gospel on the
last song, “Jesus Oh What A Wonderful Child.” Now, I can appreciate
her reasons for choosing this song and performing it in this style.
But Carey is not a gospel singer,no matter how hard she may try. I
just don’t think that her vocal style fits the genre. (Settle down
if you’re now getting ready to flame me; I’m not ripping on her,
just stating an opinion.)
The one question about the album is: Will it stand the test of
time to become a holiday classic? Well, I dunno; it’s only been out
for three years, so it’s far too early to tell. From my experience,
if a Christmas album is still being sold and played 25 years after
its release, it’s a classic. Johnny Mathis, Barbra Streisand and
Andy Williams still sell during the holidays, and their musical
genres have somewhat passed. Somehow, I think this album may still
sell in 2010.
Merry Christmas is evidence of Carey’s talents as a singer,
and possibly her wanting to overachieve a bit. But even someone who
isn’t a big Mariah Carey fan (like, well… y’know…) should find
pleasure in this one. Almost restores my faith in the modern
holiday music scene.