Check out new Christmas albums from Cher, Brandy, Michael W. Smith, Elevation Worship, Alanis Morrissette, Samra Joy, Jessie James Decker, more.
Scan through the current holiday album charts and you might have a hard time believing that we are indeed in 2023.
That’s because so many of the top sellers — to this very day — remain Christmas records that came out years, if not decades ago.
We’re talking about such multiplatinum efforts as Michael Buble’s “Christmas” (released in 2011), NSYNC’s “Home for Christmas” (1998), Mariah Carey’s “Merry Christmas” (1994), the Vince Guaraldi Trio’s “A Charlie Brown Christmas” (1965) and Nat King Cole’s “Christmas Song” (1960) — all of which ranked among the top 10 sellers when Billboard’s holiday album charts returned this season.
We totally get it. Those are some of our favorites, too. (OK, maybe not the NSYNC one.)
Yet, as much as we enjoy listening to Guaraldi’s “Christmas Time Is Here” and Johnny Mathis’ “Sleigh Ride” each December, we also dig hearing new Christmas releases as well.
And there is never a shortage of new ones to choose from, as artists from all kinds of different genres — from classic rock to, of course, smooth jazz — rush to put their own spins on the Christmas songbook.
Here is a look at some of the top seasonal offerings for 2023, all of which might deserve a spot (at least temporarily) on your Christmas play list next to Bing Crosby and other longtime holiday music greats.1. “Christmas,” Cher
How is it even possible that Cher is just now releasing her first seasonal collection? This seems like something that should have happened — most likely with help of Sonny Bono — back in the ‘60s.
Still, Cher’s “Christmas” proves worth the wait, as the legendary vocalist delivers a diversely appealing 13-song set. It kicks off with the throbbing dance track “DJ Play a Christmas Song” — which should be lighting up clubs for seasons to come — and then continues through rockers like “Run Rudolph Run” and such heartfelt offerings as “Please Come Home for Christmas.”
The album features a Christmas party’s worth of all-star guests, including Stevie Wonder, Darlene Love, Michael Bublé and Cyndi Lauper.2. “Every Christmas,” Michael W. Smith
Michael W. Smith has delivered so much great holiday season music over the decades, beginning with the gold-certified classic “Christmas” in 1989 and continuing through such favorites as 1998’s “Christmastime” and 2014’s “The Spirit of Christmas.”
He’s got another winner on his hands with “Every Christmas,” which collects the six tunes from his 2022 EP “Christmas at Home” and adds another half-dozen numbers.
Smith’s voice is in top form, wonderfully accompanied by some great musical arrangements and orchestration on this nostalgic collection.
And you might want to grab a hankie before listening to “Freeze the Frame,” which is the kind of rare holiday tearjerker that can stop you right in your tracks this time of the year.3. “It’s Christmas,” Tower of Power
East Bay funk masters Tower of Power light up the holidays with this seven-song EP, filled with a half-dozen Christmas classics as well as the original “It’s Christmas (A Long Way from Home).”
Yet, don’t try to listen to it on any of your favorite streaming sites, since this one is a CD exclusive.
