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Sometimes holiday compilations are just full of unexpected surprises. Forrest Gump's momma used to say that life was like a box of chocolates--you never know what you're going to get--and music compilations are often the same. On occasion, the box is full of the sweetest treats of diverse sorts, and CMH Records' Stars & Snow: A Texas Country Christmas perfectly fits that description.

My in-laws used to live in Texas hill country, and the state just brims with fantastic music festivals and some of the country's finest singer/songwriters and bands. To be honest, I am unfamiliar with all of the musicians on Stars & Snow, but these independent artists are humdingers. I have always loved Willie Nelson's "Pretty Paper," and Matt Thigpen does a wonderful cover here. For the most part, this music is country rock with a solid beat, although some numbers are slower and sweeter (like Steve Tenpenny's excellent "We Three Kings" and Cord Carpenter's "Happy Christmas (War Is Over)"). Pauline Reese's emotive "Hard Candy Christmas" is just fabulous.

NOTE: The track list on my review copy is not accurate. Although the album lists "Pretty Paper" in the #6 position, it actually appears as the fourth track, having switched places with WT Special's "Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy." The same is true for "Silent Night" and "We Three Kings." Finally, my album lists one number ("Country Christmas" by JD Estrada) that doesn't seem to appear on the CD at all. When albums go to press, there are often last-minute decisions regarding song placement, and that apparently was the case. Although track listing errors occurred on my review copy, they may have been corrected in later pressings. For that reason, I will rely on Amazon's version of the album's track list for the ChrismasReviews.com track listing.

Regardless of track order, Stars & Snow: A Texas Country Christmas is a solid country rock compilation for the holidays. It will have you kickin' up your heels and wanting to know more about some of these superb independent artists.

--Carol Swanson
(Reviewed in 2005)

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From the liner notes:

Merry Texas Christmas Ya'll! The barbed wire's strung with lights, the tumbleweeds are trimmed with tinsel and Santa's sleigh brakes for armadillos. So it stands to reason that Texas Christmas music's got a style of its own. CMH Records is proud to present Stars & Snow: A Texas Country Christmas performed by some of the most prominent crowd-pleasing independent artists in Texas country music today. Stars & Snow is a rockin' holiday treat, featuring the hottest country artists from the Panhandle to the Pecos. Cowgirl-with-attitude Pauline Reese croons "Hard Candy Christmas," roots rockers Micky and the Motorcars drown their Yuletide sorrows in "Blue Christmas," Austin scenesters Fallon Franklin and Blake Powers turn traditional carols into righteous country tunes. Stars & Snow--it's better than Christmas Eve in a High plains honky tonk, sipping a Lone Star longneck as the jukebox rocks and a mesquite wind blows in from the Rio Grande. OK, so it ain't better. But's close. The stars are bigger and brighter in Texas and this Christmas record is the biggest & brightest this year. We must warn you, these beautiful Christmas songs may make you want to follow that Christmas star straight to the lonestar state. Happy Holidays, Ya'll!

Various Artists

Stars & Snow: A Texas Country Christmas

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Track List