Windham Hill Christmas: I'll Be Home for Christmas (CD - 2004)

Personnel: Steve Erquiaga (guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, programming); David Cullen, Will Ackerman, Nina Gerber, Tim Ellis (guitar); Sean Harkness (steel guitar, nylon-string guitar); Barbara Higbie (hammer dulcimer, harp, violin, piano, synthesizer); Tracy Silverman (violin, keyboards); John Fitzpatrick (violin); Brian Dunning (flute, recorder); George Winston (harmonica); Paul McCandless (oboe, English horn, keyboards); Kimberly Bryden (oboe, English horn); Jason C. Golley (trumpet, flugelhorn); Bruce Roberts (French horn); Tim Story (piano, synthesizer); Philippe Saisse (piano, bass synthesizer, keyboard programming, drum programming); Giovanna Imbesi, Jim Brickman, John Burr , Liz Story, Philip Aaberg (piano); Phil Baker (bass guitar); Rich Girard (fretless bass).

Audio Mixers: Corin Nelsen; Jim Reitzel; Roy Hendrickson.

Recording information: Avatar Studios, New York, NY; Big Kitty Studios, Alameda, CA; Brickhouse Studios, Valley Village, CA; Gutlab South, Nashville, TN; House Of The Rising Sons, Chester, MT; Imaginary Road STudios, Windham County, VT; Jacordi Studio, Clane, County Kildare, Ireland; Kaleidoscope Sound, Union City, NJ; Laughing Tiger, San Rafael, CA; Liberty Village Arts Center; Seventh Chance Studio, Maumee, OH; Spark Studio, Emeryville, CA; The Ark, Camano Island, WA; The Trench, Portland, OR; Tuttomedia Studio, Venice, CA; Valerian; Zeta Recording, Holland, OH.

Arrangers: David Cullen; Will Ackerman; Jim Brickman; Liz Story; Paul McCandless; Philip Aaberg; Philippe Saisse; Samite; Sean Harkness; Steve Erquiaga; Barbara Higbie; Tracy Silverman; Tim Story; Brian Dunning.

I'LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS features 14 seasonal songs as interpreted by some of the finest artists on the Windham Hill label. This compilation is filled with many unforgettable classics, as well as two lesser-known seasonal works, "Yazala Abambuti" and "Bring a Torch Jeanette Isabella." Gentle arrangements of "Angels from the Realms of Glory" and "O Holy Night" are both soothing and spiritually invigorating, while Philip Aaberg's piano reduction of the Nutcracker Suite captures the splendor and magnificence of Tchaikovsky's holiday ballet.

The highpoint of I'LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS is pianist Liz Story's delicate rendition of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas." Other selections include Sean Harkness's "Christmas Time Is Here" and Philippe Saisse's "Winter Wonderland," both of which fall into a smooth-jazz feel. On the latter, a muted trumpet and funky backbeat turn this old-fashioned sing-along into a sleek, adult-contemporary single. Windham Hill's I'LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS is the perfect addition to anyone's holiday wish list. minimize