Johnny Mathis - Christmas Essentials

Johnny Mathis, the voice that has soundtracked the season for generations, brings sixteen holiday favourites together on Christmas Essentials, a single LP.

Mathis has been recording Christmas music since the late 1950s, and few singers are so closely tied to the holidays. This collection draws from across that remarkable career, from his classic sessions with Percy Faith and his orchestra to much more recent recordings, including a duet with Kristin Chenoweth on Santa Claus Is Coming to Town. The result is a warm, well-paced selection that plays like a festive greatest hits album.

Sleigh Ride gallops along with jingling bells and lush strings, and Silver Bells glows with that creamy, effortless tenor. When a Child Is Born is tender and reverent, a quiet moment amid the merriment, while It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year captures the giddy rush of the season with bright, swinging energy. Throughout, the arrangements are elegant and classic, the kind of polished orchestral backing that defined holiday records for decades.

His voice ties it all together, smooth as velvet and full of genuine warmth.

For anyone building a Christmas shelf, this is an ideal place to start, and it will sound right at home beside the tree and a mug of cocoa.