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From sweetly sentimental to comically sarcastic, this year's new holiday CD releases run the gamut, and there are plenty to choose from. To help you decide which might best fulfill your musical Christmas needs, here is a sampling, as reviewed by Deseret Morning News critics.
MIKE BAIARDI; "Rockabye Baby! Lullaby Renditions of Christmas Rock Classics" (Baby Rock Records) Baby Rock Records has made a name for itself with lullaby renditions of rock, metal and punk songs. This new album takes the Ramones' "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)," The Killers' "Great Big Sled," John Lennon's "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" and Band Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas," among others, and makes them into lullabies with glockenspiels, vibraphones and mellotrons. -- Scott Iwasaki
JENNY OAKS BAKER; "O Holy Night" (Shadow Mountain) Impeccable technique, stellar arrangements, a glorious sound. Baker delivers it all. The former first violinist with the National Symphony offers 11 new arrangements by Kurt Bestor, Merrill Jenson, Lex de Azevedo and Dave Zabriskie, among others. Carols include "Bring a Torch, Jeanette Isabella," "Ave Maria," "Hey Ho, Nobody Home," "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" and "Coventry Carol." This is one to listen to over and over; you'll hear something new each time. -- Carma Wadley
DAN BAND; "Ho: A Dan Band Christmas" (Reinearnate/Sony) Sarcastic holiday albums are nothing new. And this one isn't as tasteless as Larry the Cable Guy's CD (reviewed below), but there is a reason Band's album has a parental advisory sticker. He puts the X in Xmas. Actually, it's more of an R (as in R-rating). "Get Drunk & Make Out This Christmas," "Mrs. Claus" and "I Wanna Rock U Hard This Xmas" are a few of the suggestive songs. He also lampoons political correctness with "Christmakwanzakah" but then pleads for world peace with "Please, Don't Bomb Nobody This Holiday." -- S.I.
TONY BENNETT; "Snowfall: The Tony Bennett Christmas Album" (Sony) Like the Energizer Bunny, Bennett keeps going and going. Now past 80, he has returned to the archives for this classic collection, which was originally released in 1968. Included are "My Favorite Things," "The Christmas Song," a medley of traditional carols, "White Christmas" and more. A bonus DVD contains five songs from Bennett's 1992 TV Christmas...