Music Review: It's a Wonderful Christmas by Michael W. Smith

Stars: 5 out of 5
Pros: Beautiful music and words create a great CD

Cons: None worth mentioning

The Bottom Line:

Half instrumental

Half choral; all worth hearing

You'll love this third disc

Welcome to Michael's Third Wonderful Christmas CD

Michael W. Smith's two previous Christmas releases are staples of my December rotation. Naturally, getting this new release was an obvious choice. I am happy to report that It's a Wonderful Christmas will take an honored place beside the other two in my Christmas music collection.

Michael's two previous releases were very different. The first was a choral piece that flows together from start to finish. The second is more of a traditional Christmas release from an artist featuring pop songs and traditional carols. While I would venture to say this release is a combination of the two, it harkens back more to his first release then the second.

The project was recorded in the Abbey Road Studio in London and features a 65 piece orchestra on almost every song and 4 different choirs over the course of the disc.

What really sets this release apart are the instrumental tracks. 5 of the 11 tracks are instrumental. We're talking about all the even numbered tracks, so on every other track Michael sings. Michael wrote or co-wrote all of these pieces but one, and he plays piano with the orchestra. The first of these, "It's a Wonderful Christmas," could easily be a movie soundtrack. In fact, parts of it sound like something cut from The Nutcracker. "Song for the King" is almost a duet between piano and violin and is beautiful. "A Highland Carol" features bagpipes (no surprise there) and crescendos to a stirring climax. "Audrey's Gift" is a quiet piano solo.

The only instrumental track Michael didn't write, he did arrange. It is the classic carol "What Child is This?" It starts with quiet piano for the first verse and chorus, but then the orchestra joins. After that, it quickly becomes lush, making for a beautiful listening experience.

That is the only track to fully be a traditional Christmas song. The only other one that comes close is "Christmas Angels," which incorporates "Joy to the World" into the lyrics. The track itself features the Nashville choir and a children's choir. After an instrumental introduction, they start to sing a song about the angels announcement that first Christmas.

"The Promise," "Sing Noel, Sing Hallelujah," and "Son of God" are all strong choir pieces. While Michael sings the lead solos, I could imagine each of these being done by a choir during a church program.

Despite the title, "The Promise" is more about the longing for Emmanuel then about his actual birth. As such, the minor key of the song is appropriate. It really brings out the longing of the piece.

"Sing Noel, Sing Hallelujah" starts out with a boys' choir singing a cappella. Even when the instruments come in, this is still the strongest choral piece since Michael never does a solo on this one.

But Michael didn't completely forget his pop side. Two of the tracks, while still heavy on orchestra, are more pop oriented. The first of these is "Christmas Day." This is a duet with Mandisa and talks about joys of our modern Christmas celebration. It's a slow track, but heartwarming and the choir parts are wonderful.

The other track is the final track, "All Year Long." This one doesn't have any choir in it. It's a ballad prayer for a wonderful Christmas that can carry us through the entire year.

Looking over the tracks as a whole, the most upbeat tracks are a couple of the instrumental pieces. This is a CD that is designed to be background music to the rest of your Christmas celebration. I'll admit that isn't what I normally go for. And I don't like lots of instrumental music. But the stuff here is so beautiful, it makes me forget my prejudices.

You might think that a CD composed of mostly new songs would take a while to feel Christmassy. That isn't the case here. It feels like a Christmas release from the first note to the very end. I'm sure the orchestral arrangements and the liberal use of bells help create that feeling.

I know some people who loved Michael W. Smith's first Christmas release but don't like his second. If that's you, don't hesitate. You'll love It's a Wonderful Christmas as much as the first. And if you love a good Christmas project, you'll love this one as well. It's an instant classic of the season.

CD Length: 39:50

Tracks:

1. Christmas Angels

2. It's a Wonderful Christmas

3. The Promise

4. Song for the King

5. Christmas Day

6. A Highland Carol

7. Sing Noel, Sing Hallelujah

8. What Child is This?

9. Son of God

10. Audrey's Gift

11. All Year Long