Listening To......Emmylou Harris Light of the Stable

I know it sounds Scroogey, but I'm really not big on Christmas music. I think it's due to the fact that most Christmas music is intricately linked in my mind with crowded, frenzied holiday shopping madness, blaring obnoxiously from box store speakers. Fortunately, I haven't had to deal with that this year (thank you internet and sweet hubby), but the associations are still there.

Emmylou Harris's Christmas album is the exception. This album is exquisite, and for three years it has been the only record we play while we decorate the Christmas tree. I think that probably qualifies as an official "tradition." After the perky opening tune, the rest of the album is slower, calmer, and deeply soulful and reflective. Her voice soars on traditional carols like "Oh Little Town of Bethlehem," "Silent Night," and "The First Noel," and the eclecticism she is known for as a song collector is revealed in gems like "Angel Eyes" (on which she is joined by Willie Nelson) and the title track "Light of the Stable" (on which she is joined by Neil Young, Dolly Parton, and Linda Rondstadt on harmony vocals).

This is the perfect soundtrack for quiet winter evenings with those you hold dear.