Customer Reviews

Christmas Eve and Other Stories

5 star:		(212)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(18)

 

 

From the enchanting cover art right through to the last notes of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen," the last track, Christmas Eve and Other Stories is a rare delight.

In fact, although this is supposed to be a Christmas album, I find I can listen to it year 'round (as I am right now and it's August 31st).

You probably already know this from reading other reviews, but Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) is the alter ego of Savatage, a mostly heavy metal/progressive rock band whose albums tend to lean toward the "concept" side of creativity, which is to say they're generally quite a few notches above most music these days...and often contain flashes of brilliance not found anywhere else on the planet.

There's a feeling I get every year around Christmastime, and TSO "director" Paul O'Neill (who produces Savatage's albums) captured it exactly on this CD. As a matter of fact, on TSO's web site, O'Neill writes, "I love writing stories and I've always been staggeringly fascinated with Christmas. It's such a magical time of the year. If you're walking down a New York City street around Christmastime and it starts to snow, the potential for magic can be felt in the air. That's what I tried to capture on this record, while bringing a fresh musical treatment to the holiday."

To capture that "magical" feeling on Christmas Eve and Other Stories, O'Neill took mostly traditional Christmas songs and infused them with electric guitar power and energy to create a majestic, emotional, captivating sound that tends to overwhelm me with emotion or awe (such as on the incredible "A Star To Follow" track or in the dynamic "Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24" track, which also appeared on Savatage's Dead Winter Dead CD).

"A Star To Follow" is amazing. Savatage occasionally creates counterpoint/chorus arrangements that truly rise above the norm, such as the title track to The Wake of Magellan, for example. Or "Morphine Child" from their latest CD Poets and Madmen. "A Star To Follow" gives me the chills every time I hear it.

This CD isn't just Christmas tunes put to heavy metal. It's so much more than that. There's a softness and innocence, maybe even a reverence, about these arrangements (like on the delicate classical guitar instrumental "The Silent Nutcracker") -- even when such songs are placed back-to-back against tracks like "A Mad Russian's Christmas," which begins with a plaintive piano melody that's soon punctuated by bone-crushing Metallica-esque power chords.

Another example of one style of music placed like bookends against another is "Prince of Peace" immediately followed by Savatage's "Christmas Eve Sarajevo 12/24," one of the most powerful songs you'll ever hear -- Christmas or otherwise.

I can't say enough about this CD. It's the kind of album that comes along truly once in a lifetime. Even if TSO never tops this performance (The Christmas Attic and Beethoven's Last Night are noble efforts, but they don't hold a candle to this album), they will have served us well by creating Christmas Eve and Other Stories -- one of my favorite CDs of all time.

This is a classic cd that you will not tire of! I actually removed it from my Christmas storage this year in October (couldn't wait for Thanksgiving). There are several qualities to this cd. First, the arrangements are incredible. They are agressive and powerful and often combine themes from several songs into 1 (Carol of the Bells and God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen form Christmas Eve/Sarajevo). To pull this off, T.S.O. incorporates phenomenal musicianship to back these arrangements.

There is more to this cd than just great music. There is a Christmas tale which weaves the songs together into one work. The section of this story that always gets to me is from 'The Ornament' to 'This Christmas Day'.

Finally, what brings it all together is the choice of vocalists throughout the story - all fantastic. The emotion that is heard in these songs relating to the part of the story they are telling is as if they are living the story and we are observing it. Just listen to the vocalist of 'This Christmas Day' and I believe you will understand. I literally get chills at the end of this song.

All in all, this will be a favorite for years to come. Enjoy!

Well, usually around December sometime this album and its worthy successor become my two favorites to listen to - not to say you won't find me listening to it throughout the rest of the year, either. The album's 17 tracks, every single one of them excellent, are divided nearly equally between instrumental and non-instrumental tracks. The songs tell the story of an angel's quest and a runaway returned home for the holidays in an implied rock opera style. In doing so, Paul O'Neill and company are able to somehow capture the magic and spirit of the season with incredible accuracy. The style of the music varies greatly, from light to heavy and everything in between. Here you'll find piano / vocal driven Broadway moments, string filled symphonic moments, solo-guitar laden heavy metal moments, not to mention the tasteful inclusion of a children's choir and a song each to touch on folk and blues. Many of the album's melodies are borrowed from Christmas favorites, meaning plenty of the tunes will be very familiar to even the first time listener, and the original material on the album is just as spectacular as the reworkings of the classics. With at least six different lead singers, the album is both a musical and vocal treat. A definite essential.

This is an amazing CD. The songs range from beautiful (Promises To Keep, Prince of Peace) to thoughtful (Old City Bar, Ornament) to outright rockin' (Christmas Eve Sarajevo, Mad Russian Christmas). I've had it for two years and it's been my favorite Christmas record. No matter what kind of music you like, you'll like this!

Magnificent is just one of the words I can think of to describe TSO music! They are taking Christmas music and putting a new, much-needed twist on it. "This Christmas Day" is one of my favorites and poses the question "Should we be charitable all year or only during the Christmas season?" It really makes you think. I'm pretty excited about the upcoming special on Fox Family Channel! I made a note to record it. I first heard of TSO about 3 years ago when I saw a picture ad for "Christmas Eve and Other Stories". I was so taken with the beauty of the album artwork, so I ran to the nearest record store hoping beyond hope that I could find it! I did and I was more than impressed with what I heard. The music and lyrics are both beautiful and thought provoking. I am recommending both cd's to friends and family all over and I am looking forward to the new release this holiday.

WOW! I just saw the live show 12/15/00. Those of you who are Christian and also like to rock out must see TSO! Even if you aren't Christian and you just like to see awesome musicians this show is excellent. The themes are mostly based on the birth of Christ our Lord and Savior. I missed out last year and was lucky to get some tickets this year. They had an eight piece string section with a drummer, lead electric guitar, jazz guitar, bass guitar, 2 keyboards, and several vocalists. They blend traditional Christmas melodies with rock in a way that sounds incredible. Besides the predominantly rock elements you also get some blues, jazz, and soul thrown in. It really is spectacular. They have a tremendous light show and they all came out after the show to say "hi" and sign autos. If you have never heard of them them you should start with their first CD called "Christmas Eve and Other Stories." The CD's are good but the live show reaches a higher level. They also have a CD based on the works of Beethoven which I haven't heard yet but I'm sure it will be just as good. Anyway, I can't rate the live show high enough and it is a must see if you get the chance.

We absolutely love this CD. It is usually the first one we pull out of the stack the day after Thanksgiving. It is rocking and jammin', it is soft and beautiful, it is Christmas at it's best. It's also a great one the kids will love dancing around the house with. I love cleaning the house to it! A great one!

I bought this CD a year ago and made the mistake of putting it on my stereo along with four other CDs, hit shuffle and went about my business. As a result, it made very little impact on me. In fact I was disappointed. Two weeks ago, I sat down with the CD booklet and listened to this CD from start to finish. What an awesome production! I've listened to it virtually everyday since then and still haven't tired of it. I hope that one day the story that is woven throughout this CD becomes a christmas movie.

A Xmas like nothing before. This is the best album I have ever heard. Just enough of a mix of guitars and strings. The best track, the old Savatage track, "Christmas Eve (Sarajevo 12/24) opens with a haunting guitar riff, and is joined with thundering drums, pounding bass, and sliding strings and bells. This is the best and newest thing to hit christmas. The songs are traditional songs that are revved up, just enough to get a heavy feeling, but not so much that they loose the feeling of christmas. The other songs, are original songs written by Paul O'Neill (who, may I add is a sheer genius) The lyrical songs feature some of the most talented vocal performers. There is not one bad song on this album. This is a "must" in anyone's album collection.

Finally a CD worth waiting for ! A beautiful merge between metal, acoustic and classical. All tracks are worth their weight in gold. Very listenable. Incredible song writing and arrangement. Thrilling vocal perfomances and oh so professional. MISTER O'Neill, Kinkel and Oliva have outdone themselves. For Savatage fans, you will be left wanting more. For metal fans, you will be blown away. For classical fans, you will see and hear a new age in music. Their new CD is out entitled "The Christmas Attic". Have not picked it up yet but if it is half as good as the first you must buy this music.