James Taylor at Christmas (CD - 2006)

JAMES TAYLOR AT CHRISTMAS (2006) is essentially a repackaging of the artist's 2004 JAMES TAYLOR: A CHRISTMAS ALBUM, which was made available in Hallmark stores. "Deck the Halls," featured on the Hallmark album, is not on AT CHRISTMAS, which instead features a version of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" and "River," originally released on a Taylor studio album in 2002. These technicalities aside, AT CHRISTMAS is a mellow and sweet holiday offering from the venerable singer-songwriter, with Taylor's gentle acoustic and easy tenor caressing "Go Tell It On the Mountain" and "The Christmas Song." Taylor fans looking for a little Christmas cheer will want to pick this one up.

For the most part, holiday-themed albums are about as memorable as what you had for lunch a month ago. As humans continue to evolve, there's a very good chance that we'll develop some sort of yuletide audio bypass valve that will allow us to filter the three-and-a-half million versions of every Christmas song ever made into one solid rendition that either pleases or displeases us, and can be dealt with accordingly. That said, James Taylor's brilliantly titled James Taylor at Christmas is about as inoffensive a collection of seasonal classics as one could hope for. The legendary singer/songwriter's warm voice is the perfect vessel for "Winter Wonderland," "Jingle Bells," and the "Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)" because it makes absolutely no impression on the listener. ~ James Christopher Monger minimize