The Christmas Collection (CD - 2005)

Audio Mixer: Ren Swan.

Recording information: Rokstone Studios, London, England (2004); Whitfield Street Studios, London, England (2004).

Photographer: Walter Chin.

Simon Cowell's "man band" creation Il Divo bring their perfect hair and immaculate throats into the crowded holiday genre with the creatively titled Christmas Collection, a heavily decorated box of yuletide favorites that dutifully showcases each tenor's captivating voice. There's not much difference between this offering and the myriad of similarly themed releases from contemporaries like Celtic Tenors, Josh Groban, and Charlotte Church, but it's a pleasant enough deviation from your parents' Mannheim Steamroller record. ~ James Christopher Monger

Quickly following up the success of its 2005 self-titled debut, the international pop/opera quartet Il Divo unveiled its first Christmas album later that year. Vocalists David Miller (US), Sebastien Izambard (France), Urs Buhler (Switzerland), and Carlos Marin (Spain) stick to a mostly English-language set of Christmas classics, with their resonant, emotive voices lifting every track on this lovely holiday album. minimize