Joy (CD - 2000)

Additional personnel includes: Darwin Hobbs, Nicol Smith.

Recorded at Sound Kitchen, Brentwood, Tennessee; Abbey Road, Whitfield Street, London, England; Studios Piccolo, Montreal, Quebec.

JOY: A CHRISTMAS COLLECTION was nominated for the 2001 Grammy Award for Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album.

Audio Mixer: Steve Bishir.

Popular CCM quartet Avalon doesn't disappoint with their first offering for the holiday season. A collection of ten songs celebrating Christmas, Joy leaves the listener feeling joyful, uplifted, energized yet reverent about the reason for the season. The opening and title song, a jazzed-up fantasy on "Joy to the World," gets the toes tapping and the mood continues until the slightly more reflective third track "Don't Save It All for Christmas Day." Choirs were rounded up for background vocal support on several tracks, the most outstanding of which is "Good News" during which the basses are wonderfully strong and mesmerizing. The quartet also covers a handful of songs written or made famous by other artists and, again, no disappointment in their performance on all. One interesting note: The album design has a definite retro feel, à la '60s and '70s, yet the music is clearly recorded in 2000, a fun juxtaposition. A worthy addition to the fan's collection, as well as the holiday music aficionado's collection. ~ Dacia A. Blodgett-Williams

JOY is a holiday offering from Christian pop quartet AVALON. Don't misunderstand, though. This isn't Bing Crosby-style Christmas music. Avalon is unquestionably contemporary, and whether they're tackling a chestnut (pun intended) like "The Christmas Song" or performing original Yuletide compositions, they do it their way. Pure pop is the reigning aesthetic here, complete with danceable beats, synth hooks, and harmonies that wouldn't sound out of place on any chart-topping teen-pop mega-smash album you care to name. In short, JOY is a Christmas album that should appeal to those with holiday spirit as well as anyone with an ear on pop radio. minimize