Bocelli's new "Family Christmas" album on Decca

[Lance]

Listed as Capitol/Decca 448 2795

So we have Andrea, Matteo, and Virginia giving us a compilation of 13 tracks. There is no "outward" listing of accompaniment artists until you get to the credit page of the booklet. The arrangements are by Stephan Moccio. The album includes piano, keyboard, synthesizer, guitar, acoustic guitar, bass guitar and percussion, background voices, and a boy choir.

The music: Do You Hear What I Hear?, Away in a Manger, Feliz Navidad, The First Noel, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, Over the Rainbow, Buon Natale, Joy to the World, The Greatest Gift, When Christmas Comes to Town, Happy Xmas (War is Over), Il giorno piu speciale, and I'll Be Home for Christmas.

I always try to pick up any Christmas album by a usually classically oriented singer. Those discs (such as the one Eileen Farrell did for Columbia) don't seem to linger forever though hers was reissued in her complete disc set for Sony. Some, like Flagstad, committed her voice to some Christmas songs, as did Rosa Ponselle, and on and on it may go.

I have not been yet inspired to play this disc, however. I'm not sure what to expect. "A Family Christmas," however, is a nice idea. ♫