Tony Bennett's love affair with Count Basie's band has lasted longer than the great Basie himself. On this delightful holiday platter, Bennett sits in with Basie's orchestra and show's everyone how it's done -- relax, be yourself and swing through Christmas and straight into the New Year. Monty Alexander holds down Basie's place at the piano while West Coast stalwart Bill Holman writes most of the charts. The album shines with Bennett's innate musicality and decency. You aren't ever going to hear better versions of "Silver Bells" and "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" anywhere. Editor: Nick Dedina
Not only is this one of the greatest Xmas albums ever, it's one of the few holiday releases that you can enjoy throughout the year (and it doesn't even matter if you've seen the beloved Peanuts TV special or not!). Guaraldi's original tunes "Linus & Lucy," "Skating" and the oddly melancholy "Christmas Time Is Here" have all become a part of our culture. This remastered version actually improves on perfection, with superior sound and alternate takes. Editor: Nick Dedina
It just wouldn't be the holidays without watching a rerun of the best claymation Christmas special ever made. Burl Ives first appeared as narrator Sam the Snowman in 1964 to set the record strait: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer couldn't have guided Santa's sleigh that one foggy Christmas Eve without help from prospector Yukon Cornelius, aspiring dentist elf Hermie and Bumbles the bouncing abominable snowman. If you find yourself Scrooged this holiday season by the weight of commercialism and the nagging of family members, this is the perfect soundtrack to stoke the fire of your Christmas spirit. Editor: Eric Shea
The idea of Kanye West singing (with help from Auto-Tune) for a whole album sounds like a disaster because, well, he can't sing. Surprisingly, it works thanks to the sincerity and vulnerability he displays while crooning about losing his mother and breaking up with his fiancee, the album's central topics. West's production here is much darker than in the past on tracks like "Welcome To Heartbreak" (featuring Kid Cudi) and the witty "Robocop." Although some will pray that his love hangover ends soon, most will appreciate a successful attempt by one of the best rappers alive to stretch hip-hop's creative boundaries. Editor: Toshitaka Kondo
There's no doubt the Killers are out to rule the rock world. Day & Age is big, odd and ostentatious and whether you care about Brandon Flowers' Bono/Morrissey interpretation and melodramatic, sometimes silly lyrics ("Are we human or are we dancer?"), you can't deny this is one catchy affair. Their devotion to the '80s is nothing new: Duran Duran, Pet Shop Boys, U2 and Bowie are filtered into the mix. But it's the big sax trills, mighty horns, fall-to-the-knees guitar solos, "Wimoweh"-ish chants and funky Caribbean beats that prove these guys aren't slacking their way to the top. Editor: Stephanie Benson
The idea of Kanye West singing (with help from Auto-Tune) for a whole album sounds like a disaster because, well, he can't sing. Surprisingly, it works thanks to the sincerity and vulnerability he displays while crooning about losing his mother and breaking up with his fiancee, the album's central topics. West's production here is much darker than in the past on tracks like "Welcome To Heartbreak" (featuring Kid Cudi) and the witty "Robocop." Although some will pray that his love hangover ends soon, most will appreciate a successful attempt by one of the best rappers alive to stretch hip-hop's creative boundaries. Editor: Toshitaka Kondo
When Beyonce goes schizo -- dividing her musical persona into balladeer Beyonce and club diva Sasha Fierce -- she is certainly organized about it. She dedicates the first side to the 'Yonce persona and the second to Fierce. Both halves are great. The gorgeous, sweeping "Halo" displays her incredible range and knack for squeezing pathos from stone, while the second half's "Diva" offers Fierce a chance to strut through Bangladesh's stuttering production while proclaiming, "Diva is the female version of a hustler." Editor: Sam Chennault
There's no doubt the Killers are out to rule the rock world. Day & Age is big, odd and ostentatious and whether you care about Brandon Flowers' Bono/Morrissey interpretation and melodramatic, sometimes silly lyrics ("Are we human or are we dancer?"), you can't deny this is one catchy affair. Their devotion to the '80s is nothing new: Duran Duran, Pet Shop Boys, U2 and Bowie are filtered into the mix. But it's the big sax trills, mighty horns, fall-to-the-knees guitar solos, "Wimoweh"-ish chants and funky Caribbean beats that prove these guys aren't slacking their way to the top. Editor: Stephanie Benson
This Sunday, long-suffering Guns N' Roses fans will finally have in their hands something that many probably thought they'd never see again: a brand-new album. Literally 15 years in the making, the often-ridiculed "Chinese Democracy" documents band leader Axl Rose's transformation from the savage ringmaster of sleaze rock to the finicky maestro of overproduced epics. More
![A Charlie Brown Christmas [Expanded]](http://images.ibsys.com//2008/1127//18157916.jpg)
