Warm favorites

Reviewed December 2007

Part of country royalty (she's Mel's daughter), Pam Tillis' first-ever Christmas album is loyal to her and her father's country roots, but also contains huge swaths of jazz and classic pop. Running through mostly familiar territory on the 10 tracks here, Tillis' warm yet feathery voice lends new charm to old favorites like "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," "Christmas Waltz," "Pretty Paper" and "I'll Be Home for Christmas." Less-familiar seasonal songs like "Beautiful Night" and "Light of the World" providea a nice freshness. And a special moment comes when her dad joins her for a medley in the round of "Jingle Bell Rock" and "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree."

Review by Jim Trageser. Jim is a writer and editor living in Escondido, Calif., and was a contributor to the "Grove Press Guide to Blues on CD" (1993) and "The Routledge Encyclopedia of the Blues" (2005).