These Are Special Times (CD - 1998)

Personnel includes: Celine Dion (vocals); Dion Family (vocals); Peter Zizzo (guitar, programming); Bryan Adams (acoustic & electric guitars, bass); Kamil Rustam (acoustic guitar); Larry Salzman, Marc Shulman, Ira Siegel, Chieli Minucci, John Chiodini, Michael Thompson (guitar); Vancouver Orchestra (strings); Richie Cannata (saxophone); Bobby Franceschini, Bill Harris (alto saxophone); David Foster (piano, keyboards); Diana Krall, Shane Keister (piano); Loris Holland (Hammond B-3 organ); Phil Western (keyboards); Heather Hinton (organ); Tom Rainer (synthesizer); Chuck Domanico (bass); John Robinson, Shawn Pelton (drums); Bashiri Johnson (percussion); Steve Skinner (keyboard & drum programming).

Producers: David Foster, Ric Wake, Bryan Adams, R. Kelly.

Engineers includes: Felipe Elgueta, Randy Staub, Phil Western.

"The Prayer" was nominated for the 2000 Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s).

Whether or not you're a fan, it's undeniable that Celine Dion is the people's siren of choice in turn-of-the-millennium America. Part of the reason for that (apart from her superhuman pipes) is the way she throws herself into a song with total emotional commitment, taking nothing lightly. That kind of earnestness serves her in good stead on this collection of Christmas tunes. Tackling both the traditional ("Ave Maria," "Adeste Fideles") and the modern (John Lennon's "Happy Xmas") Dion invests these yuletide songs with just the right mix of reverence and authority. Joined by everyone from R&B love man R. Kelly to Opera crossover superstar Andrea Bocelli, Dion proves that even a concept as overdone as the Holiday album can sound fresh and substantive when a performer of her ilk is involved. minimize