It's a Wonderful Christmas, Michael W. Smith

I looked through my CDs to find another Christmas album that I could write about. I have a few here beside me, but I’m most interested in listening to this second one by Michael W. Smith. It’s a Wonderful Christmas was produced with David Hamilton and released in 2007. It was recorded at the Abbey Road Studios and is described as “a classic in the making.” The insert says, “Rich with cinematic orchestration and imagery of the season, let this album become the soundtrack of your Christmas!”

Even before I read the description I would have described it as movielike, which befits the concept of “cinematic orchestration.” And I can see already that it is not a style I want to listen to at Christmas. As beautifully done as it may be written and produced, it does not have the familiar songs I like to hear at Christmas.

I also can confirm today that although I have a number of MSW CDs that I very much enjoy, I can tire of Smith’s voice, especially when it is “intense.” By the time I came to the third track, “The Promise,” I was ready to click through to the next song. Passing through a second musical interlude we heard Mandisa (of American Idol fame) partnering with MSW for “Christmas Day,” which also does not fit my preferences. I had high hopes for “A Highland Carol” to be a lovely Scottish-styled carol but, though it had bagpipes, the song was too “big” for my tastes. Nor did I like the next few. When will I find one I enjoy? Listen. Listen. No, not yet.

This album is not as good as his Christmas album, which I listened to yesterday. I’ll try ratings for you. If Christmas is a 6, It’s a Wonderful Christmas is a 1.