Wow Christmas: Green

Various Artists (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 4, 2005)
• Original Release Date: 2005
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Word Entertainment
• ASIN: B000AA4I3K
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #65,551 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Christian artists and Christmas music go together like milk and cookies left for Santa. But for every cold, delicious glass of milk there's a stale cookie. Same can be said for WOW Christmas. There are plenty of traditional renderings like the delightful "Jingle Bell Rock" from Point of Grace, who could sing pages out of a phonebook and make it sound like the holidays; Zoegirl's "What Child Is This?"; Casting Crowns' "Away In A Manger"; Matthew West's "Let It Snow"; and, Mark Schultz's "The First Noel." For a different spin on the classics, check out Rebecca St. James' "Hark The Herald Angels Sing," otherwordly and strangely appealing; Tobymac's reggae-tinged "O Come All Ye Faithful"; Relient K's "Deck The Halls," which holds just enough energetic chutzpah to escape any charges of irreverency; and Bethany Dillon's smoldering jazzy take on "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen." New classics here give us a smile like Newsong's "The Christmas Shoes", David Crowder's south-of-the-border "Feliz Navidad," and Jars of Clay's ethereal "Little Drummer Boy." As for those overbaked cookies--FFH's close-but-no-cigar reworking of "Do You Hear What I Hear" or Jump 5's beat-silly "Sleigh Ride" will still be on the plate when Santa splits town. --Michael Lyttle

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Wow, unlike others in the series this has 15 new songs, October 22, 2005

By 

Michael Dalton (Eureka, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Wow Christmas: Green (Audio CD)

What sets "WOW Christmas" apart from others in the "WOW" series is 15 new recordings. That's enough new songs to fill one of the two discs.

It's the new recordings that stand out. They sound fresher and more interesting than the songs gleaned from previous releases. One of my favorites is "O Little Town of Bethlehem" by Steven Curtis Chapman. This beautiful, acoustic rendition is from his new Christmas recording. It makes me want to hear his new release.

Chris Tomlin's acoustic version of "Angels We Have Heard On High" is a pleasant surprise. I had expected a modern worship sound.

With so many artists, the music styles are diverse. Rebecca St. James gives "Hark the Herald Angels Sings" a modern Euro-pop/rock sound. Third Day does an excellent rock version of "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel." Surprisingly, BarlowGirl rock the hardest with "O Holy Night." Bethany Dillon combines light jazz with alternative country on "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen." It sounds a little like Norah Jones. "Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow" by Matthew West is a likeable straightforward rendition that could appeal to anyone.

One of the biggest surprises was FFH's "Do You Hear What I Hear." The stanzas are punctuated by music that sounds like the Grateful Dead. The music is creative and energetic. They have never sounded so good.

Though the new songs stand out, there are some fine older recordings like "Welcome To Our World" by Michael W. Smith and Amy Grant's "A Christmas To Remember." The Newsong classic "The Christmas Shoes" is also included.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Modern sounding Christmas music for a modern world, November 21, 2005

By 

Music Lover (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Wow Christmas: Green (Audio CD)

My wife loves Christmas but I used to work in a mall so listening to traditional Christmas music still, to some degree, makes me cringe. In my attempt to find something we can both enjoy I picked up the new WOW Christmas 2005. This album is all about modern music. If you're looking for traditional sounding music you might be disappointed in this (leaving room for error based upon the fact that while this has a modern sound it's done very well). There are 15 new songs and 15 'traditional' songs so this album has something for everyone. While I mentioned above that the songs are done in 'modern' sounds, keep in mind that the genre of modern changes. Natalie Grant offers "Joy To The World" for example while has a modern gospel sound to it. Rebecca St. James' "Hark the Herlad Angels Sing" is done in a modern rock sound. Steven Curtis Chapman's "O Little Town of Bethlehem" has a traditional sound to it while the very next track is "O Come All Ye Faithful" by Toby Mac which can be called hip hop. As you can see there's truly something for everyone. It's very different and yet it all blends together - isn't that part of what Christmas is about? The Christmas season brings many different people with many different backgrounds together and this is truly celebrated with this offering.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Disc #2 is the best, November 25, 2005

By 

L. Sappington "sappshots" (Montana) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Wow Christmas: Green (Audio CD)

The first disc remakes most of the songs you've known from childhood, but they make you prefer the traditional tune. HOWEVER, the second disc is incredible, which includes a surprisingly sultry rendition of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen by young talent Bethany Dillon and a tearjerking Mary Did You Know by Clay Aiken.
FFH's track 24 gets annoyingly squeaky at spots.
Overall, worth the bucks!