Audio CD review:
John Denver - Rocky Mountain Christmas

John Denver - Rocky Mountain Christmas

Band: John Denver Title: Rocky Mountain Christmas Rating: Release Date: 1998-08-25 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Aspenglow - John Denver, Denver, John 2: The Christmas Song - John Denver, Torme, Mel 3: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - John Denver, Marks, Johnny 4: Silver Bells - John Denver, Livingston, Jay 5: Please, Daddy (Don't Get Drunk This Christmas) - John Denver, Danoff, Bill 6: Christmas for Cowboys - John Denver, Weisberg, Steve [2] 7: Away in a Manger - John Denver, Traditional 8: What Child Is This? - John Denver, Dix, William Chatte 9: Coventry Carol - John Denver, Traditional 10: O Holy Night - John Denver, Adam, Adolphe 11: Silent Night - John Denver, Gruber, Franz 12: A Baby Just Like You - John Denver, Denver, John 13: Jingle Bells - John Denver, Paxton, Tom 14: White Christmas - John Denver, Berlin, Irving 15: The Music Is You - John Denver, Denver, John 16: Perhaps Love - John Denver, Denver, John 17: Dreamland Express - John Denver, Denver, John

AS BEAUTIFUL AS THE ROCKIES CAN BE!!! A real classic. This CD is a must for anyone collecting beautiful holiday music and John Denver's voice and songs are breath-taking here. The good 'ol days I had it when it was on vinyl. In the process of rebuilding my John Denver collection, it was great seeing this album again. Yes, folks, there was such a thing as old fashioned records. When I first bought this album in '76 I think it was, I played this album every year until the poor thing warped around 1984. For me at least, Denver takes the schmalz out of Christmas songs. After I finish collecting other Denver albums on these new fangled CD's, I'm going to buy this and remember the good 'ol days. John Denver provides an ideal Christmas album for listening to in front of the fire Only the opening track, "Aspenglow," would suggest the later, but I know I am not alone in associating Denver's music with that western mountain chain (I always listen to his first greatest hits album why driving through the Rockies). The songs on this album constitute a "Rocky Mountain Christmas" more because John Denver is singing them than because they are about the holidays in the high mountains. Besides that first track Denver also had a hand in writing "A Baby Just Like You" and the last three bonus tracks on the album, but the chief charm here is hearing songs like "Silver Bells" turned into John Denver songs. "Rocky Mountain Christmas" is ideal for quiet nights in front of the fire. Most of the songs rely on simple accompaniment by acoustic guitars, although sometimes an entire country band shows up for the likes of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and a harpsichord pops up as well. But clearly the effort here is to keep things simple. There is a nice trio of traditional carols in the middle of the album with "Away in a Manger," "What Child is This?" and "Coventry Carol," which makes up for having "Please Daddy (Don't Get Drunk This Christmas)" intruding in the lineup (for me it stands out like a sore thumb). Fortunately in between the two is Eric Weisberg's "Christmas for Cowboys," which serves as a nice transition. Actually the songs that impressed me the most were the ones where Denver tackles something different, which would be "Coventry Carol" and "O Holy Night. " The accompaniments are more formal and so is his singing, but still with his distinctive tenor voice. This is the 1998 reissue of the CD and as such adds five bonus tracks to make it even better: "Jingle Bells," "White Christmas," "The Music is You," "Perhaps Love," and "Dreamland Express. " The last three are not exactly Christmas songs and give the end of the album a decidedly different feel, so you may actually just want the CD with 14 tracks and not this one with 17 (I do not believe you can get a CD with just the 12 tracks from the original album). Or else you can just program this one to end the way you want. Just like the LP One contains two extra tracks and another even more. Apparently this album has been released in at least three different formats. Perhaps they are a better bargain and you get to hear more John Denver, but this CD remains true to the original album and concept. Somehow having tracks after "A Baby Just Like You" would spoil the album. This is typical Denver, reverent, irreverent, mellow, lively. John was a study in opposites. He blended folk with country and was the first artist to broaden the base of country music listeners. The current popularity of country music has much to owe John Denver. Before him, it had a much narrower following. "Aspenglow" is a lovely tune, one that I like to hear every Christmas, even though it is not traditional. The oddest track is "Please, Daddy, Don't Get Drunk this Christmas. " Even more peculiar is the fact that I really like this track. It is certainly memorable, and in its way brings home the fact that not every child has a wonderful Christmas and perhaps we should all do more to make Christmas special for those that are less fortunate. All in all, this is a great album, especially if you love John Denver. It makes the season just a little more poignant. Rocky Mountain Christmas In with it all was John Denver's Rocky Mountain Christmas. When my parents moved from my childhood home into a new house, my mom stumbled across all of her old 8 tracks. Since my mother has a birthday near Christmas, I surprised her with the CD. She was just as tickled pink as she was when she found the old 8 track. It was perfect for a woman who loved John Denver and his music. . You can see a complete list of all John Denver discography, or go back to the John Denver tabs