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Joan Osborne - Christmas Means Love Audio CD

A fair review of the Joan Osborne "Christmas Means Love" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Joan Osborne reviews here, or go back to the Joan Osborne tabs.

Joan Osborne Band: Joan Osborne
Title: Christmas Means Love
Rating:
Release Date: 2007-09-11
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Introduction 2: Christmas Means Love 3: Santa Claus Baby 4: Away in a Manger 5: Christmas Must Be Tonight 6: Cherry Tree Carol 7: Christmas in New Orleans 8: Children Go Where I Send Thee 9: Angels We Have Heard on High 10: What Do Bad Girls Get? 11: Great Day in December 12: Silent Night

Brilliant but hard to classify
Not that you'll find much evidence of Joan's country roots here, as this album tends to rely more on jazz, blues and soul influences; the liner notes suggest Billie Holiday, Ray Charles and Etta James as obvious influences and that`s fine by me as I`m a fan of all three singers. Having been raised in Kentucky, Joan might have been expected to seek a musical career in country or bluegrass music, but she headed instead for New York where she was able to find her own musical style, blending jazz, blues, soul and pop with some country added into the mix when it suits her. The results are brilliant, as even the obvious songs (Away in a manger, Silent night) prove, both of them sounding very distinctive here.

Actually, Joan generally steers clear of the obvious songs, preferring to go for original, obscure or rarely-recorded songs elsewhere on the album. I believe Christmas must be tonight (written by Robbie Robertson) was originally recorded by The Band. I don't remember hearing any other recording of this song so I'm pleased that Joan chose to revive it. Another oldie is the jazz/blues classic Christmas in New Orleans, which Joan also revives to great effect. In its full length version, as heard on Mary Chapin Carpenter's Christmas album Come darkness come light, there are twelve verses to Children go where I send thee, but Joan chose to only do the first four verses although she included a long fade-out.

Cherry tree carol is a traditional song that often turns up on choral Christmas albums but rarely on a mainstream album, so it's another inspired choice by Joan. Another traditional carol, Angels we have heard on high, occasionally turns up on mainstream albums, but not so often that you'd get tired of hearing it. The remaining four songs (Christmas means love, Santa Claus baby, What do bad girls get?, Great day in December) are all new to me and may well be originals. Indeed, Joan actually wrote my favorite among them, What do bad girls get?, so that one's definitely original and it leaves one to wonder what inspired Joan to write that song, as well as leaving one wondering what Santa gives to those bad girls.

This is a wonderful Christmas album that largely avoids the obvious tracks (and therefore won't appeal to those who just want to hear the same old classics). If you enjoy a blend of jazz, blues and soul music and you are looking for Christmas music that is a little different from the more typical alternatives, this could be just what you're looking for.
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Christmas Means Love
Joan Osborne : Christmas is Love
This was a refreshing surprise! A soon to be soulful classic!.


Something Different
Would highly recommend it to anyone searching for something that veers away from standard Christmas fare. I just loved this CD! What I think I loved the most about it is the fact that it is something a little different than the "usual" Christmas stuff.


some holiday surprises
"What do bad girls get" is an original written by Joan and it is my favorite. What a nice change from the regular sappy Christmas music out there. There are only a couple of traditional songs that might be alittle boring but all in all . . . . great CD!!.


Perfect Christmas from a world class singer
It's much, much better. The simple truth about Joan Osborne is that she is one of the greatest singers of our time! The truth about this album is that it is like no other Christmas album I have ever purchased. She goes from old spirituals to her version of the Band's "Christmas Must Be Tonight" with such grace and ease you'd think she could climb Mt Everest. Then there's her original, "What Do Bad Girls Get" which is a great next step from "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus," because, well, frankly, it's a much sexier idea. I love the fact that this Kentucky born soul singer can easily make traditional (and Biblical) songs sound just as festive as the Andrew Sisters-esque "Santa Claus Baby. " The absence of all the typical Christmas songs is what makes this CD the perfect Christmas for the modern world!.


You can see a complete list of all Joan Osborne discography, or go back to the Joan Osborne tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.

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