Dave's Review

Rating: 4 1/2 STARS

Label: Spring Hill Music Group
Producers: Michael Sykes and Duane Allen
Websites: www.springhillmusic.com and www.oakridgeboys.com
Song Titles: "Hark The Herald Angels Sing," "Christmas Cookies," "From Love To Love," "Away In A Manger," "Hay Baby," "Little Annie's Christmas Wish," "I'll Be Home For Christmas," "Blessed Be The Day (Of Our Saviour's Birth)," "Jingle Bells," "Ordinary Days," "Uncle Luther Made The Stuffin'," "Back To Tennessee," "The Warmest Night Of The Year," and "O Come All Ye Faithful"

Christmas is a subject the Oak Ridge Boys have addressed several times previously. If my count is correct, Christmas Cookies is their fifth full length Christmas project. Other titles include Christmas (1982), Christmas Again (1986), Country Christmas Eve (1995), and An Inconvenient Christmas (2002). (They have also released some compilations like Christmas Collection: 20th Century Masters.)

Christmas Cookies continues the group's tradition of interspersing favorites with new material. The 14 songs fall into four cateogories: carols, classics, cheerful new songs, and new tear jerkers. The carols are mostly in a direct-from-the-hymnbook style. One exception is "Hark The Herald Angels Sing." You'll still hear all the familiar words on the third verse, but it catches your attention because they come out of order. Other carols include "Away In A Manger" and "O Come All Ye Faithful."

Standards include "Jingle Bells" and "I'll Be Home For Christmas." The latter is a bass solo for Richard Sterban, whose smooth vocal gives this rendition a different feel even though the accompaniment is in a traditional orchestrated style.

Several songs are arranged with the intention of bringing a smile to your face. "Christmas Cookies" mentions those "sprinkley things" a couple of times and how the singer loves to eat this traditional treat made by his "babe." "Hay Baby" is an upbeat track with some good Nashville style finger picking. "Uncle Luther Made The Stuffin' " is an autobiographical track written by tenor singer Joe Bonsall that describes his own family. Uncle Luther's stuffin' must have been particularly memorable. "Back To Tennessee" gets an uptempo bluegrass treatment.

The best tear-jerker on the project is "From Love To Love." Written by Leslie Sacher, the first verse tells of a “little mama” who “has a baby that she’s too young to keep” and a “new mama” who “gets a baby she just can’t believe.” In other words, a baby is put up for adoption. In the second verse, a “proud mama pins a rose on a rented tux” while another “proud mama slides a bobby pin in a long white veil”…a wedding is taking place. In the third verse, the scene shifts to a town (Bethlehem, though it isn't directly named) where a “daddy left behind His only baby.” At this point, the song takes on a totally different meaning. (I wrote an extended description of the song which can be viewed HERE.) Other songs that attempt to get the water works flowing on this project include "Little Annie's Christmas Wish," "Ordinary Days," and "The Warmest Night Of That Year." The last one features Sterban as he tries to recreate the romantic feel that he popularized on songs like "Dream On," but falls short in my opinion. It's the only major misstep on the CD, though.

Production quality is very good and with 14 tracks in all, you get a good bit of music for the money. The packaging also includes a recipe for "Jan's Chocolate Chip and Peanut Butter Cookies." The Oaks get high marks for song selection and for continuing to sing with a trademarked vocal style that you can immediately recognize.

by David Bruce Murray