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This is the kind of record I feel very uneasy commenting on, because I cannot muster even the slightest interest in the easy listening genre. In fact, it is one of the few musical forms that I am actually hostile towards. It's inherent saccharine sweetness rings false to me. I don't "get" Frank Sinatra, when he sang this genre, or Bobby Sherman, or Barry Manilow, either. I think my loathing is generational: this is the music of my father's (WWII) generation. There is nothing here for a Generation Jones-era boomer to relate to.

Having gotten that disclosure out, I feel a lot better saying what I did like about Richard Wintergarten's I Remember Christmas. First, there is some wonderful songcraft going on here. Wintergarten writes complex, warm and inviting melodies. In other words, he is a perfect purveyer of the form, both musically and lyrically. Also, this is an impressive set of original holiday songs. There is nothing better, for me, that a Christmas CD that eschews the classics, in favor of giving the listener something new. Plus, listeners of this genre will be impressed, I believe, with the orchestral arrangements on most of these selections. The musicianship is superb.

So, there. It's great. Now, make it stop.

--Richard Banks
(Reviewed in 2007)

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From the liner notes:
Scott Rosette: bass guitar
Condit Atkinson: drums
Vincent Bell: lead guitar
Vincent Bell: rhythm guitar
Peter Phillips: piano, keyboard synthesizer
Richard Reiter: flute (tracks 5, 10), saxophone (tracks 2, 7)
Gayle Dixon, Mark Giannini, Alvin Rogers: violins (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 9)
The Hirschberg Childrens Chorus (Bernie Gerstmayr, Danny Hirschberg, Suzanne Lally, Grace Sheen): background vocals (tracks 4, 5)

Richard Wintergarten

I Remember Christmas

Artist site

Track List