Holiday Folk Music CDs

Loreena McKennitt's second full-length holiday music album embraces some more obscure songs about winter and the midwinter festival celebration. As she told me in a recent interview, she made a concerted effort not to sing the most popular Christmas hymns, but instead she sought out songs that "cover[ed] a more broad spectrum for the season."

Singer-songwriter Rosie Thomas released her first Christmas album this year, which includes some classic Christmas carols, as well as other winter-themed songs. Among the former are hymns like "O Come O Come Emmanuel," while among the latter are Joni Mitchell's "River," and Thomas' own "Why Can't It Be Christmastime All Year?"

The Klezmatics have done a number of albums that turn the unfinished songs of Woody Guthrie into good-time klezmer jams. Woody Guthrie was a Christian, but he liked to write songs from different points of view, including songs for the celebration of Hannukah.

Bob Dylan made a Christmas album. Now he can hopefully check that one off his list and go back to what he does best: everything else. There has been quite a bit of discussion and anticipation surrounding Christmas in the Heart. Few people ever expected to hear a full album of Christmas songs from Dylan, who grew up Jewish and was a born-again Christian for a time, but who has, generally stuck to the more secular. Note, though: this album should be reserved for hard-core Dylan fans.

The Asylum Street Spankers would not have been the first folk band to come to mind if I was thinking of artists I'd expect to record Christmas albums, but their 2001 release A Christmas Spanking does a pretty fantastic job of delivering on the old standards and a few unexpected tunes, as well. Included here are re-arranged renditions of "Blue Christmas," "Baby It's Cold Outside," and "The Christmas Song," as well as some more obscure favorites like "Zat You, Santa Claus?" and "Mele Kalikimaka."

Robin and Linda Williams are perhaps best known for their incredible harmonies, and nothing is better for Christmas carol singing than such a sweet command of harmonies. The Prairie Home Companion veterans delivered some great, less-performed standards like "Mary Had a Baby" and "Rise Up Shepherds and Follow," among others.

What can possibly be better to crank up while you drink your egg nog this holiday season than the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band playing "The Little Drummer Boy"? The classic folk outfit also tackles "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" and "We Three Kings," among others. Guests include Alison Krauss and Vassar Clements.