Customer Reviews

Christmas With Ronnie Milsap

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Ronnie Milsap plays piano beautifully and his rich, vibrant voice adds charm to classic Christmas songs like I'll Be Home For Christmas, Silver Bells, and O Holy Night. The original production of "Only One Night Of The Year" will cheer the child in all of us as we remember waiting for Jolly Old Saint Nick when we were young. The last song on the album reminds us of the important things in life. If you are not familiar with Ronnie Milsap, this album shows why this man has been recording for nearly four decades and has produced so many blockbuster Country hits. This is a man and an album you will love and play through out the holidays year after year.

My husband and I have listen to this tape for the past 10 years and it IS worn out! Now I have to listen to my husband sing Milsap's songs. Lucky for me he does a great Milsap impression but I still want to purchase a new tape. It's great seasonal music sure to lift your spirits. I highly recommend it.

It's hard to believe this 1986 album is already 20 years old. As you would expect from the greatest vocalist in country music, Ronnie Milsap delivers the goods here in a Christmas album that simply blows away any holiday CD being released by today's twang-infested country stars. Anyone expecting to hear a typical "country Christmas" album full of fiddles, steel guitars, or twangy singing will not find it here. Ronnie Milsap's music often sounds more pop than country, and this is definitely a Christmas album dominated by vibrant pop arrangements with several songs featuring top-notch choir and orchestra backing.

Milsap's warm and soothing voice makes him one of the few country singers who can deliver a Christmas song nearly as well as the legendary Christmas crooners. Ronnie balances modern Christmas material with beautifully arranged traditional classics, and the result is a fine effort that is a welcome addition to anyone's holiday music collection.

"It's just not Christmas", "Only one night of the year", and "It's Christmas" are the modern songs which are all good, but the familiar traditional tunes are the ones where Milsap shines the most. "I'll be home for Christmas" spotlights Ronnie's smooth crooning and features a sparkling arrangement that ranks with Glen Campbell's recording as one of the best. "Silver Bells" is also as good as most versions by other artists.

The two highlights of the album feature superb musical arrangements by Milsap himself. "Oh Holy Night" is a magnificent tour de force that ranks among the best recordings of this Christmas classic ever made as Ronnie gives what is probably his greatest vocal performance ever. His great voice soars with stunning range and power during the song's climax, providing dramatic evidence that Ronnie Milsap remains one of the most underrated vocalists in America. Few singers in the history of country music can compete with the vocal range Ronnie displays in this classic song.

Milsap's excellent "Christmas Medley" is the album's other highlight where Ronnie combines "O Come Emmanuel", "Silent Night", and "Joy to the World" to glorious effect with a top-notch choir. Ronnie also wrote a touching poem for the album titled "Christmas Thoughts" that reminds us what the holidays are all about. "We're here to love" is an earlier Milsap recording from 1983 that closes the album. Although it is hardly a Christmas song, the lyrics are well suited to the holiday season.

If it doesn't quite reach the superb standards of classic Christmas albums by Nat King Cole or Andy Williams, "Christmas with Ronnie Milsap" is still a more impressive effort than many contemporary Christmas albums on the market today, and possibly the best Christmas album ever made by a country artist. If you prefer the smooth, pop style of Christmas music with top-notch singing, you won't be disappointed with this one!

I,ve had the cassette of this album for about 10-12 years and play it almost exclusively during December. I think it's almost worn out but what a GREAT album.

Ronnie is such a great singer and the songs on this cd is wonderful. I especially love the last song on the cd "We're here to Love" it really express the love we should have all the time and not just at Christmas.

We've had this Christmas album since it was released in the mid 80's. We wore out a couple of cassettes then bought the CD when it became available. IMHO, you won't find better Christmas music. It's worth the price of admission alone just to hear Milsap's vocals on "O Holy Night". If you don't have it, you're in for a real treat. If you do have it, then you already know why it's our favorite :)

Love this CD. A timeless classic. No other Christmas CD can compare. Wore out the tape growing up. Sounds great on CD.

I bought the cassette tape back in the 80's and loved it. Everyone who heard it loved it and then when Cd's came along, it got shoved in the old cassette box. A friend reminded me how much I loved it so I found it on CD. Guess what! Everyone who hears it today still loves it. The Christmas Medley on this CD is absolutely awesome and so powerful to the true meaning of Christmas!....I don't care how old you are, you will come to appreciate what an excellent artist Ronnie Milsap is. This CD is truly timeless and you will not be a bit disappointed with this purchase.

Over the years, I've gone through 3 cassett's & 2 CD's. Ronnie's a Christmas must.

He has some traditional and some new Christmas songs. His "Oh Holy Night" is positively awesome. I played this CD long before the Christmas season, or at least some of the songs because they were on a CD with The Judds that a friend gave me. You won't go wrong on any Ronnie Milsap CD.