Christmas Celebration of Hope

B.B. King

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 6, 2001)
• Original Release Date: November 6, 2001
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Mca
• ASIN: B00005R8EW
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #98,308 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Now that Charles Brown is gone, it's up to B.B. King to uphold the blues for Christmas. If this first collection of holiday music is any indication, he deserves his own igloo in the North Pole. Self-produced with his touring band in New Orleans during a spring heat wave, A Christmas Celebration of Hope finds King overcoming both the heat and Yuletide music clichés, turning out an inspired and rollicking album that is lit from within by King's generous spirit and gracious heart. Like others before him, King dipped into the blues and R&B holiday canon, but instead of just recycling well-worn classics, he plucked gems like "Blues Decorations" and "Backdoor Santa" out of obscurity and polished them to a high gloss. When King does cover standards, like "Merry Christmas, Baby" and "I'll Be Home for Christmas," he imbues them with his own earthy personality and sleek, restrained playing. King also includes two originals in this surprise package: "Celebration," which he first released in 1960, and the new instrumental, "Christmas Love." This record not only will make Christmas merrier for the listener, it will also help people suffering from cancer, HIV/AIDS, and diabetes, as King has donated the proceeds to the City of Hope, the world-renowned biomedical research and treatment center. --Jaan Uhelszki

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars At long last and well worth the wait!!, November 6, 2001

By	Charles E. Jones Jr. (RAWLINGS, VIRGINIA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

What can I say? It's been a long time comin' but this is one
of the best holiday albums that I have ever heard. There isn't
a bad track on this great cd and many of the songs are
wonderful new tunes for the holiday season. The backup band
could not be better. The piano, the horns, all of the band
is crystal clear and just beautiful. B.B. and his trademark
Gibson electric guitar, Lucille have never sounded better in my opinion and I'm a long-time fan of the man.
Buy this great cd and Happy Holidays!!!!

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I know what I like., November 14, 2001

By A Customer

I'll preface this review by saying I am not a professional cd reviewer. I am a B.B. King fan from away back and this latest Christmas CD is a welcome addition to my Holiday favorites. It is excellent not only just for listening; but, also provides good background party music. It has a great feel for getting with your mood. Thanks for bringing out some good new songs along with my favorite oldies.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Christmas album I've been waiting for all these years!, December 6, 2001

By	"bluemamma" (San Luis Obispo, CA USA) - See all my reviews

I've only had this CD for a week and it is already one of my favorites. When you think about it, it is amazing that B.B. King hasn't done a Christmas album before this. It was just meant to be. That big, warm, strong voice is the aural equivalent of a blazing fire. It was made for homey, comfortable Christmas songs. At the same time, even past seventy, he's got a sexy edge that makes a song like Clarence Carter's Back Door Santa at least as hot as the original. For me, the highlight is Merry Christmas Baby, a song that just about every blues or r&b singer of the past forty years has recorded (some of them brilliantly). This version would stand up to any of them, and wins my vote as the best ever, and, honestly, is among the toughest, hottest, most soul-drenched things I have ever heard B.B. King do. It there is such a thing as justice, this album is destined to become a classic.