White Christmas

Pure, loving, and honest. Those words describe the spirit of this holiday–and the voice of this soul music giant. Al Green, who became an ordained minister many years ago, could be expected to put his all into songs of praise such as “O Holy Night” and “Silent Night.” On this collection, however, he gives equal time to more modern holiday favorites, lingering languidly over the melodies of numbers such as “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” and “Winter Wonderland.” The sounds are sweeter than the candy canes. –David Sprague