Search - Rosie O'Donnell :: Rosie Christmas

Good sized assortment of Christmastime duets

Matthew G. Sherwin | last seen screaming at Amazon customer service | 10/16/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Rosie O'Donnell gives us a Christmas CD with an interesting assortment of fourteen tracks, some of which work better than others. The quality of the sound is very good and there's pretty much something for everyone on this CD.



Rosie and Cher (well, mostly Cher) do a great job with their duet of "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)." This somewhat melancholy number gets a dance beat flavor to it as Cher delivers every note to perfection. Cher sings with great sensitivity and passion; and Rosie does her share to make the ballad a solid number. Love that percussion! The mixing on "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" reflects a great deal of effort. Great! "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" features Billy Joel and Rosie doing their best for this duet. Billy sings with a panache I rarely hear and enjoy; and Rosie again contributes her best for this classic Christmastime ballad from Meet Me In St. Louis. The piano on this number is very beautiful, too.



"Do You Hear What I Hear?" is a cute number by Rosie with the voice of Elmo from Sesame Street; and Elton John joins Rosie for a beautiful rendition of "White Christmas." Elton never sounded better; and the piano arrangement along with the strings work wonders for this duet. Rosie's voice sounds better on this track did it does on the other tracks; perhaps this range and key work better for Rosie.



One reviewer noted that Rosie and Lauryn Hill wrecked "Little Drummer Boy," so I wanted to listen closely to this number. I was not surprised: if you like rap and/or hip hop, you'll like this rendition of "Little Drummer Boy." The overall sound and flavor are not as bad as I had feared; but the arrangements are a sharp departure from the versions many people are more accustomed to hearing.



Donny Osmond does a fine job with Rosie on "Winter Wonderland;" the backup vocals also work well for this classic Christmastime tune. The modulations are interesting although they don't always work. There are fast changes between major and minor keys; and some just plain sound better than others. Listen also for Rosemary Clooney to join Rosie for "Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town." This tune gets a big band sound that really swings brightly as Rosemary and Rosie belt this one straight out of the ballpark.



The CD ends with Billy Porter doing a smash version of "O Holy Night." The musical arrangement stuns me with its beauty; and Billy delivers this with great sensitivity and all his heart. The choir works well. What a strong ending for this album!



The liner notes include awesome artwork and we get the song credits.



In sum, this Christmas CD from Rosie O'Donnell and the other artists has a few bumpy moments although the vast majority of the music works very well. I recommend this CD for people who are comfortable with more recent, less traditional renditions of Christmas songs. Fans of the artists on this CD may want to check it out, too.



Four stars. (Three and one-half stars if you don't like Lauryn Hill's style.)"