SoCal beach bunny that she is,
Colbie Caillat
recognized a gaping hole in our collective Christmas consciousness: thousands of seasonal records exist but not a one was made for the beach. And so her 2012 album fills a specific need -- it's a breezy, sunny holiday platter for those who never see a snowflake in their December.
Colbie
's specialty is a light touch but she actually rocks a little bit harder here than usual, letting her duet partner
Brad Paisley
goose "Merry Christmas Baby" with his gnarly Telecaster and giving "Winter Wonderland" an insistent electronic pulse, elements that make
Christmas in the Sand
a little livelier than either of her full-length platters, but the casual brilliance of this unassuming but thoroughly entertaining holiday album is that it has a genuine personality. Apart from a couple of pretty good newly written tunes, the songs are familiar but the sound isn't:
is lively, cheerful, and bright, the sound of the season for climates where there's nary a cloud in the sky. And there's never been a Christmas album like that before, so it's something of an achievement for
Caillat
. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine