| The Season For Romance - Lee Ann Womack | |
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Reviewed by Matt Bjorke
When a country music artist chooses to record a Christmas album, typically they don't have to stay close to their traditional style that they've been known for. Much like Vince Gill, Martina McBride, Trisha Yearwood and even Garth Brooks have done previously, Lee Ann Womack has recorded an excellent collection of old classics, some with a full orchestra and some with a big jazz band.
Except for the title track, "The Season For Romance," every track is a Christmas classic. Lee Ann's voice is in fine form on her playful duet with Harry Connick, Jr. "Baby It's Cold Outside" is a jazzy little number that finds Lee Ann and Harry trading vocals like the classic artists of the 1930's used to do.
I am a person who loves to have a mixture of Christmas music every year yet I don't like to deviate from the standards all that often but "The Season For Romance" is a song that could and should be a classic. The song's lyrics encompass everything that is right about the holiday season and that doesn't mean giving or getting expensive gifts. It says the best gift anyone can get is love.
Of the classics, songs like Mel Torme's "The Christmas Song," the traditional hymn "Silent Night," and "White Christmas" could be on every Christmas album and I'd be a happy person. Each song is given an wonderful arrangement that only further showcases what a wonderful vocalist Lee Ann Womack is.
"The Man With The Bag" is one of the jazz holiday staples and Lee Ann's version would fit well on any jazz station this and many Christmas seasons to come.
The final track on the CD, the classic "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve" is performed like the jazzy torch song that it is. When I hear Lee Ann sing this version it's as if I am transformed to a snowy scene in a holiday movie.
Lee Ann Womack simply wraps her voice around these ten standards. When the album is over, you may find yourself hitting repeat wondering why it took Lee Ann and MCA Records so long to release a holiday album. The Season For Romance tells me that Lee Ann, like Vince Gill, Martina McBride and others, can indeed sing any Christmas song any way they want and it will sound great.
Song List:
Sound clips courtesy of Barnes & Noble.
Album cover, used with permission of MCA Nashville.
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