George Strait’s latest Christmas album arrives nearly 13 years after his first yuletide compilation, Merry Christmas Strait to You. Inquiring minds want to know - why the wait? As this second CD shows, Strait and Christmas go together like a horse and carriage. His suave smoothness is especially suited to the holiday classics, and this album (as with the previous one) has a pleasing mix of old and new.

The CD begins with two newly-penned numbers"I Know What I Want for Christmas" is a trademark, easy-going, Strait tune that sets the tone for the rest of the record. The fiddle and steel guitar will make country listeners feel especially at home. While "I Know What I Want for Christmas" is tenderly romantic, the follow-up, "Old Time Christmas," evokes another emotion pervasive throughout the holiday season - nostalgia. The song pleads, “let’s leave the world behind us, let the spirit find us, and have an old-time Christmas for old time’s sake.” The song conjures up pleasing images with phrases such as “the snowman in the yard - a living Christmas card.” Nice!

Classics "Let it Snow" and "Jingle Bell Rock" follow."Let it Snow" is timeless and Strait’s vocals on this are both scary and delightful. Strait is so good in this simple song that he easily transcends his country singer persona, becoming the embodiment of a great Christmas crooner. He’s ours (country music’s) and he’s as good or better than anyone else out there. "Jingle Bell Rock" always a winner, is one of those fun songs that makes Christmas music seem, well, okay, even in October.

"Merry Christmas (Wherever You Are)" is the only downer on the album, though even it’s “missing you” theme has a certain sweet sadness to it. The mood immediately picks up with the following song, the light-hearted "All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth." Mel Torme’s great "Christmas Song" is up next and once again Strait proves adept at recreating the magic of the original.

The most touching number on the album, and the one most listeners will remember, is "Noel Leon." The song is a recitation, except for the chorus, and speaks of a man who leaves Christmas lights up all year ‘round. “Peace on earth, good will to men, can it be all that wrong to feel like Christmas all year long?” the song asks. The ending is smart, funny, and memorable.

The album winds up with "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and the perky "Santa’s on His Way."

George Strait knows how to put an album together. This is another carefully-crafted, right-on-the-money effort that should immediately be added to any collection.

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Mountain West Music 2002