George Strait
Classic Christmas
(MCA Nashville)
First Appeared in The Music Box, December 2008, Volume 15, #12
Written by John Metzger
Sun December 7, 2008, 06:30 AM CST
Since joining forces with MCA in 1980, George Strait’s greatest strength has been his consistency as a vocalist, interpreter, and performer. In effect, Strait has positioned himself so perfectly in the marketplace that he has become a brand name. By viewing his output as his product line and his fans as his customers, he quickly realized that in order to remain successful he must reliably fulfill everyone’s expectations without rocking the boat. This certainly is not an easy task to achieve, but for the most part, his strategy has worked remarkably well. In fact, his missteps have been so slight that they largely have gone unnoticed by the masses. On his latest outing Classic Christmas, however, Strait takes his penchant for tradition too far. As a result, the set may be the most disappointing effort in his canon.
Strait filled each of his previous holiday-oriented forays (Merry Christmas Strait to You and Merry Christmas Wherever You Are) with a mixture of well-worn favorites and freshly penned tunes. On Classic Christmas, he opted to follow a different path. The endeavor is composed exclusively of Yuletide hymns and contemporary standards. Although this concept is sound, Strait and his team of session players take relatively few liberties with the material. Consequently, it’s only when the ensemble relaxes into the Western swing of cuts like Jingle Bells and Up on the Housetop that the collection truly springs to life.
Elsewhere, Classic Christmas suffers from a rigid adherence to its
plainspoken arrangements. Strait’s reverence for tradition is, perhaps, to be
expected, but aside from the faint hint of the country-imbued twang that adorns
tunes such as Silent Night; O Christmas Tree; Hark, the Herald
Angels Sing; and O Come, All Ye Faithful, there’s nothing that truly
distinguishes them from the countless other versions that have been recorded
over the years. If this problem plagued only a track or two, Strait might have
escaped unscathed. Unfortunately, so many of the tracks on Classic Christmas
fall into this trap that the outing struggles to become anything more than a
pleasantly forgettable excursion. 
Of Further Interest...
Johnny Cash - Christmas with Johnny Cash
Merle Haggard - Goin' Home for Christmas
3 Fox Drive & Friends - Christmas Grass, Volume 3
Classic Christmas is available
from Barnes & Noble. To order, Click Here!
Ratings
1 Star: Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!
Copyright © 2008 The Music Box