Faith Hill
's holiday album
Joy to the World
is a proudly old-fashioned record -- almost too much so, really, as there is nothing surprising about it, from its collection of shopworn standards to the full-blown yet curiously stiff production. Basically, this is an album where if you read the title, you will know how the song will sound:
"Joy to the World"
gets a big, bombastic, orchestral arrangement appropriate for a concert recital,
"Santa Claus Is Coming to Town"
swings like
Sinatra
conducted by
Billy May
,
"Little Drummer Boy"
is prim and proper,
"Holly Jolly Christmas"
feels pulled from Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer,
"Away in a Manger"
is sweet and stately. Everything is business as usual, right down to
Hill
's performances: big, not blustery; they're immaculate theater, sometimes verging on grandstanding but often suited for the occasion. Which might not make
a singular holiday album in any respect -- it's too pat and perfect to be memorable -- but for anybody looking for a new old-fashioned Christmas album, this suits the bill just fine. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine