Customer Reviews

December

5 star:		(83)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In the early 80's I first heard the song "Thanksgiving" on the Windham Hill 1982 or '84 Sampler (my memory escapes me right now). When I noticed who the artist was and the album from which the song was selected, I went and bought the cassette. I actually played this cassette until it could not longer play (thank goodness for CDs). So after I thoroughly wore out my cassette version I purchased the CD.

The great thing about this album, for me, is I never get tired of it. I have listened to these songs for the last 18 years and they always sound as if I am listening to them for the first time. The CD has a winter feel to it; quiet, peaceful, soothing, melodic, and clear. There is an inclusion of classical favorites such as Bach's "Joy," the traditional version of "Jesus, Jesus Rest Your Head," and the traditional version of "Carol of the Bells," etc.

The music itself is very graceful and well defined. It is great music to have in the background when you read or study. I guess that is why I have enjoyed this music for so long. Actually, this CD also works well for the Christmas season or for listening all year round. George Winston is a wonderful piano player. His playing is filled with careful touch, strong emotional texture, and a style that grows on you every time you listen. I believe this is his best work produced, I highly recommend it, especially if you love classical, piano, and instrumental music.

A friend introduced me to George Winston several years ago with this very cd. Am I ever glad she did, as it opened a new world of music for me! I enjoy all the Windham Hill artists. I love Winstons' "Carole of the Bells," "Joy," and "Thanksgiving" arrangements. This entire cd is so beautifully contemplative and although it has Christmas music on it, it is a cd that I enjoy year round. Everyone that I introduce to it, has the same reaction as I initially did...."It's beautiful." I have since collected several other George Winston releases, but I believe this is my all time favorite. Pure, classic GW. It's certainly a "must-have" for the Holiday season! If you enjoy solo piano, then you're sure to enjoy "December."

About a month ago I got excited at the prospect of fall coming.The reason? I can listen to "December" for the next 6 months! This cd makes me incredibly contemplative, sad(in a good way) and happy... I listen to it at work, home and especially in the car-it's perfect for a long drive through the Northeastern U.S. in fall and winter. I feel the feelings I'm sure George was trying to evoke. It moves me like no other piece of music I own.The landscapes speak to me.The people around come alive with once invisible souls-all because of this beautiful piano album. I highly recommend it-my love of the "album" was passed down from my mother-who "lent" me her tape which I finally gave back a year later after buying my own copy. Get ready for some serious reflection...and goosebumps!

How do you describe a Monet, a Renior, or a Picasso to a blind person? The honest truth, a friend of mine invited me to decorate his family's Christmas Tree one evening about ten years ago. While helping him, he put this CD on and told me it was a tradition to listen to "December" while decorating the tree. "December" made such an impression on me that I have made it my family's tradition ever since.

George Winston will be talked about long after we are all dead and buried. He is an artist in every sense of the word. I feel his impressionistic views of his subject matter are what make him so popular with music fans around the world. "December" is a great example of his ability to take images and emotions that surround the holidays of Thanksgiving to New Year's and let you experience them in a whole new way. There are so many great tracks on this CD that its hard to point to one but his rendition of Christmas Eve (Tracks: Snow, Midnight, & Minstrels) is simply amazing. Whatever your thoughts or emotions of Christmas Eve might be, you will look at it in a whole new light. The emotions and images that he paints for you in the notes he plays (and doesn't play) will let you experience the holidays in a brand new way. Trust me, just click and buy it!

I discovered this album about 15 years ago, while walking through a music store. I immediately loved the little bit of it that I heard, and bought the record on the spot. I have already replaced the record with a cassette, and now with a CD. I have given it as a gift every year to friends, family, co-workers of all ages and musical tastes. Everyone loves it and asks how I discovered it. Many of these same people have passed on the tradition of gifting this album.

It's great. Don't think twice about buying it for yourself or for a friend!

I started listening to George Winston when I was 11 years old. I fell in love with his music then and continue to love it today, 14 years later. I own practically every CD in Winston's collection, but "December" is my all-time favorite.

The beauty of his music cannot be captured in words, and a true piano-phile would be the only person who could understand what it feels like to be given a private concert in your own living room. When I listen to "December", I imagine myself as a child tracing pictures in the frost on the window panes and watching the flame of my mother's cinnamon-scented oil lamp cast shadows on the wall. When Mr. Winston plays, it is not one song but several simultaneously, and it's nearly impossible to imagine how one man alone can master the keys so effortlessly.

Track One, titled Thanksgiving, is my favorite. This song is soft, peaceful and reflective. Christmas season starts after the turkey is on the table on Thanksgiving Day...and everyone is so grateful to be together as a family in the safety of a loving home. You can smell the bread, taste the cranberries and feel the warmth of the oven.

Track Ten is a traditional favorite. The Holly and the Ivy is done cheerfully. It is an honorable rendition of the song, and the way Mr. Winston tickles the keys brings to life the beauty of the song.

All the songs included on the CD are beautiful & relaxing and most definitely put one in the mood for winter. Why, just listening to it as I write this, I'm ready to start crocheting a scarf beside the fireplace! Add this jewel to your Christmas treasury. For the true piano enthusiast, it is certainly a worthwhile addition to you collection as George Winston is the master of this magical, dignified instrument.

It was some 15 years ago that I was wandering aimlessly in a mall record store. The place was almost deserted--only me and a young clerk who was stocking the records in the bins (yes, we had records in those days). All of a sudden I heard a familiar tune reverberating through the store. It was "The Holly and the Ivy", a somewhat archaic Christmas carol, but one which I was intimately familiar. I remember being thirteen and having to wear a silly choir smock with a large red bow under my chin in order to entertain admiring parents at the Christmas pagent. I felt like the silliest person in the world. We performed "The Holly and the Ivy" that night. I never forgot that moment. Now, years later it all came back to me; but, so much more beautifully than before. I asked the saleslady who was playing that unbelievable piece of music and instead, she handed me the album. I bought December that night, Winter Into Spring the next and have all of George's albums; now replaced by CDs. I have seen him in concert five or six times. I can't think of any artist I have enjoyed more over my forty years of buying music. This album will always have a special place in my psyche. I cherish each cut so very much.

A beautiful record, DECEMBER has, unfortunately, been labeled "New Age" by fans and critics alike.

That term has more to do with Winston's label-mates than the music on DECEMBER. This is just plain old piano solos, played with a wonderful touch and sensitivity. It isn't really the holiday season until you hear DECEMBER.

I first bought this album on vinyl when it first came out in the '80s, and I just about wore it smooth. If you've never heard the whole album all the way through, do so. It will take you on a full course through your heart and soul, and set many things right again.

I am dismayed that this album frequently falls into the "New Age" genre. It is not the bland, tasteless, tofu, tree hugging stuff that I think of as "New Age". Also, even though it contains several traditional holiday pieces, it's not just Christmas music either. Try it and you'll see!

This is one of the most beautiful collections of instrumental holiday music I have ever heard. It is moving and uplifting. If you want to listen to something that doesn't sound like the same old holiday tunes and yet is traditional at the same time, this is it. Can be listened to at any time of the year.