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I'm sure that Arthur's Perfect Christmas will be a popular pick this season based on the popularity of its namesake, Arthur, and the PBS television Christmas special of the same name. The good news is that this Christmas CD for children is not content to rest on its laurels. Instead, it offers its own brand of entertainment, even for children who are not already Arthur fans.

While I was unable to learn much about the plot of the Christmas special from listening to the CD, this didn't really matter. By including several Chanukah and Kwanzaa songs in addition to the traditional Christmas fare, the 25-song set offers something for everyone. And the Christmas traditionals, such as We Three Kings, often received humorous treatment ("We three kings ate boiling tar..."). Also, there was one rolicking, non-holiday inclusion, Baxter Day, that I enjoyed as much as anything else on the record.

And I was touched by Arthur's Christmas message at the end. It expressed my own childhood experience of Christmas better than anything I've ever heard. Commenting on his "perfect" Christmas, Arthur observes, "Well, nothing turned out like I expected this Christmas, but you know what? I'm glad. It was better than I could ever have imagined."

--Richard Banks
(Reviewed in 2000)

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Various Artists

Arthur's Perfect Christmas

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Track List