Adult Contemporary

July 27, 2022

# 14

B. J. Thomas
Christmas Is Coming Home
1997

Warner Resound, a division of Warner Bros. Records Inc., a Time Warner Company. © (P) 1997 Warner Bros. Records Inc. for the U.S. and WEA International Inc. for the world outside the U.S..

Genre : Adult Contemporary

B. J. Thomas was born in Oklahoma in 1942. It was around 1960, at 18, that he started to pursue a career in music more seriously. B. J. Thomas started having hits in the mid-sixties and in 1969, he recorded the Burt Bacharach / Hal David song Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head featured in the movie “Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid”, which produced his 3^rd gold record.

He managed to have a few more hits in the 70’s. In the latter half of the seventies, he had more success on the Country charts than he did on the Pop charts. Along with success came some of the hardships of success and B. J. Thomas fell into hard times with drugs. His wife became a Christian in 1976, and soon after, B. J. did too. From that point on, most of his albums were Christian and Gospel releases.

He was able to get back on his feet and resumed a successful career. B. J. Thomas died in 2021 from lung cancer. He was 78. Throughout his career he recorded over 60 albums.

Christmas Is Coming Home is B. J. Thomas’ second Christmas record and he has released at least 5 Christmas albums throughout his career. This is a direct release from 1997. Cover artwork shows a smiling B. J. Thomas sitting in an armchair in front of a fireplace. The CD insert artwork is very good. It is a 4-page fold out. On one side is a numerical list of songs, time signatures, writer / arranger credits and lyrics. Below the lyrics of the song is a list of the musicians that play on that song. On the flip side of the insert is the cover image, and special thank you’s from B. J. Thomas and the producers Robert White Johnson and Chris Rodriguez. A list of production credits is also included. In a small section is an endorsement for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) of which B. J. and his wife Gloria were huge advocates.

The back of the CD has a picture of a lit-up gingerbread house with a numerical track listing (with time signatures), listed in sentence format. Also, production credits and record label release notes.

There are 11 songs included on this Christmas CD.

The first song, When Christmas Comes This Year, is one of 4 original songs written for this release. It’s a beautiful piano driven ballad with strings and a nice chorus providing background voices.

The second song, Be It Unto Me, is a wonderful song outside of traditional Christmas songs. It tells of the Virgin Mary being visited in the night and being told of being chosen as the one to carry the Son of God. Very nice.

Track 3, also an original Christmas song written for this album, features B. J. Thomas and Kathy Troccoli in a duet on the title track, Christmas Is Coming Home. It is a beautiful song that yearns for the wonderful home Christmases of years past and the joy of reliving those memories in the present. Excellent.

The 4^th track, Tennessee Christmas, is a popular Country Christmas song written by Amy Grant and released as a single from her in 1983. B. J. Thomas does a great job with his take on this new country Christmas standard.

On This Holy, Holy Night, is a duet with Jonathan Pierce. Also original to this CD, the song speaks of what the night Jesus was born means to the singer. A very fine duet.

Wake Up, It’s Christmas Morning, is the sixth song. It tells the story of a man who is awoken by God from a dream, who then calls him to duty. B. J. continues the song through verses that describe the angels, shepherds and world leaders that are also called to the duty of the Lord.

The seventh song is Take A Walk Through Bethlehem. It tells the story of a modern commercial Christmas and encourages the listener to get the true spirit of Christmas by taking a walk through Bethlehem, even if only in their mind.

Song number 8, Let There Be Peace On Earth, is a duet that features Tabitha Fair. I am familiar with this song as it shows up on other Christmas CDs, mostly by artists that record Sacred music more than artists that don’t. This is not a true Christmas song; it is more of a traditional Sacred song. It does not mention the word Christmas, or speak of the birth of Jesus, but nonetheless, it is a wonderful Sacred song that fits in at Christmas.

Precious Promise, the ninth song, tells of Joseph’s unquestioned devotion to Mary, even though he does not understand what the future holds for him. In the beginning of the song, I felt like the song stumbles over lyrics that seem to be forced, but the song comes together by the second verse and finishes out very nicely.

Song number 10, Grown-Up Christmas List is a song written by David Foster and Linda Thompson Jenner in 1990, featuring Natalie Cole on vocals. But it was Amy Grant that made the song a new Christmas standard. This is a fitting Christmas song for B. J. Thomas. His voice is perfectly matched for the lyrics.

The last song on the CD, and the only traditional Christmas hymn represented, is Silent Night. The song opens with a lead guitar and synthesizer, but until the vocals begin, you can’t recognize it as the most recorded Christmas song. Once B. J. starts singing, the arrangement becomes more traditional and it’s a beautiful finish to this CD.

This is a very good Christmas CD. There are many songs on here I am not familiar with, but I love all Christmas songs. I love Christmas.

I am familiar with B. J. Thomas, but mainly through the hits he had in the 60’s and 70’s on AM radio. This is the first time I’ve heard him sing Sacred music. His voice is just as strong as it was in the 60’s. B. J. Thomas does a terrific job of conveying his convictions through song.

If you are a Christian with a strong faith, you will want to add this to your Christmas collection. If you like B. J. Thomas, you will want to add this to your collection. This will not make the people seeking out Rudolph, Frosty or Santa Claus happy. But it is a wonderful Christmas CD to behold.

I give this CD :

****

Chicago – What’s It Gonna Be, Santa?

April 20, 2025 / Leave a Comment / Adult Contemporary

July 24, 2022

# 10

Chicago
What’s It Gonna Be, Santa?
2003

(Originally released 1998 as Chicago XXV: The Christmas Album on Chicago Records)

This album was originally issued as Chicago #CRD-3035 (8/25/98).

# 4 – 1998 – Billboard Christmas

# 14 – 2003 – Billboard Christmas

Genre : Adult Contemporary

Finally! The band Chicago releases a Christmas album! I’ve been waiting a long time for this one. But, alas, it’s from 1998. Since I started collecting Christmas music in 1998, I always thought I must be missing something. Where’s the Chicago Christmas CD? Since I was focused more on buying affordable Christmas music from the 1950s and 60s, I wasn’t even aware that the group Chicago had just released a Christmas CD.

Many rock groups were releasing Christmas music in the 70’s, but not the band Chicago? As far as collecting goes, the older, the better, right? With digital remastering, older recordings can sound brand new. Plus, there’s the argument between analog and digital. Analog instruments just sound better than synthesizers. I always look for the classic original Christmas releases from the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. Yes, I prefer digital remastering, which is very common these days. I don’t find that it takes anything away from the original sound. So, I had always hoped there was a vintage, early to mid 70’s Chicago Christmas album out there. But there was not.

With that being said, I’ll take it! (And I did! I grabbed it right off the shelf as soon as I saw it). Who can pass up a Christmas record by the band Chicago?

This is actually a 2003 Rhino Records re-release of the CD issued in 1998. The original title was Chicago XXV: The Christmas Album. (Chicago has a long ongoing practice of labeling their albums with Roman Numerals). The cover artwork has been changed from a Christmas wreath on a dark gray door with the address of 25, to a white background with the Chicago logo in red.

Also, starting with the 2003 Rhino re-issue, the title has been changed to What’s It Gonna Be, Santa? Actually, while reading the liner notes on the CD, this release on Rhino Records should be looked at as a new release. With the inclusion of 6 newly written songs, this is really not a re-issue of the 1998 release. At least not as the band sees it.

The inside booklet is a 6 page, double sided fold out that lists songs, writer credits and publishers in addition to a list of all musicians and their instruments for each song. This is very similar to the original CD insert. On the back side of the fold out there is a history of the recording of this, their first Christmas offering. There is very good artwork and details included.

The original 1998 release had 14 songs. This 2003 Rhino re-issue has 6 bonus tracks. That’s also pretty good for a re-release that’s only 5 years older than the original. Also, starting with the 2003 release, the track order has been changed.

If you’re familiar with the group Chicago, then you know they are a horn based rock band out of Chicago, formed in 1967. There has consistently been about 8 members in the group throughout their existence. Some have died, others have moved on and others came in to replace them. They quickly moved to Los Angeles in 1968 and started the routine of playing live everywhere they could. Their success came quickly. Their sound was new, and their early albums sold well.

This CD opens with Winter Wonderland, a rocking song that I actually forgot was a Christmas song while I was listening to it. Winter Wonderland is one of the 6 bonus tracks recorded in 2003 just for this re-release.

Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! is a Christmas standard with the ‘Chicago’ sound applied.

The band revs it up for Jolly Old St. Nicholas. Also recorded in 2003, it definitely has a hard rock, 2 / 4 sound. A fantastic lead guitar comes in to play towards the end of the song and then the song fades out.

The Little Drummer Boy is one of the better tunes here. With a repetitive snare drum intro, (as is done on many arrangements of this classic), the song progresses, slowly building, all done well with the ‘Chicago’ sound; lots of horns with intricately layered voices, all while a choir directed by Carmen Twillie, provides a gospel feel throughout.

This Christmas is one of the newer Christmas songs that appears on this CD. Being written within the last 35 years of this recording, it is well suited to a more rock arrangement.

Next follows Feliz Navidad. An acoustic guitar intro with Latin percussion instruments providing accompaniment throughout makes this song almost unrecognizable. I have never heard such a unique arrangement put to this song. I think most people would enjoy this one.

The seventh track, Bethlehem, is one of 3 originally written songs that appear on this album. It too was recorded in 2003 specifically for this re-release.

O Come All Ye Faithful, the ninth track, is one of 5 Christmas hymns included. All other songs are Christmas standards. It is delivered in a soulful and softer arrangement than most of the songs featured here. But still with the Chicago horns making it a signature Chicago song.

Anticipating Chicago perform Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer was a little underwhelming. I couldn’t imagine what they might do with this children’s favorite. It begins with a fully layered horn section, then rocks into an arrangement that seems overworked.

The CD continues through upbeat, as well as slower renditions of Christmas standards. Sleigh Ride is given the full Chicago treatment.

What Child Is This? opens with a soulful a cappella chorus then remains a soulful ballad throughout.

I think God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen is one of the standout songs in this collection. What is normally a very dour song, has a wonderful swinging rock beat applied to it. The horns and lead guitar work make this song one of the best on the whole CD.

Tracks 18 and 19 are the other original Chicago Christmas songs. They both appeared on the original 1998 release. Both feature a children’s chorus made up of the children of the band members.

Track 18 is a song titled Child’s Prayer.

Track 19, One Little Candle, is a minute and a half of the children singing over an acoustic guitar, the only musical instrument involved.

The last song on this 2003 release is White Christmas. This Irving Berlin composed standard is given the classic Chicago treatment, once again, making it almost unrecognizable, at least for the first 30 seconds. I’m not saying this is a bad thing. Chicago uses a different approach to these songs than most arrangers who stick to the original arrangements, the way they were originally composed.

There are many reasons to own this CD.

The fact that they started with 14 songs in 1998, then added 6 newly recorded bonus tracks, makes this a Christmas CD that is just packed full of music. A full 75 minutes of Christmas songs! You don’t get that too often, except maybe for 2-disc compilations.

Chicago has gone out of their way to put new, fresh arrangements of Christmas classics into a rockin’ Christmas CD! And overall, they do a great job.

If you like your Christmas to rock a little, I can highly recommend this CD. But make sure to get the 2003 issue. Also, if you like more contemporary arrangements of Christmas classics, you will want to include this in your Christmas collection.

That being said, I like the band Chicago. I LOVE Christmas music. But I don’t LOVE the band Chicago doing Christmas music. Not as much as you might. At least not for 75 minutes. This is a great CD to have. I’ve anticipated a Chicago Christmas release for so long, and I knew the ‘Chicago’ sound would be there, so I knew what I was getting into. Oh yes, it’s a must have for me. But I tend to gravitate to older, more ‘Classic’ Christmas music so I might include this one in a general mix. If I know that the friends coming over prefer contemporary Christmas music over Bing Crosby and Perry Como, this is going to be the first one I pull off the shelf.