How The Time Goes That We'd Rather Not Know

I was never a huge fan of Everything But The Girl. I fond their name clever and I loved Idlewild but everybody loved Idlewild. Since then I can't really remember them surfacing in any shape or form, and even between Tracey Thorn going solo in 2007 and then people noticing that she did in 2010 I was always a casual fan. But like we previously established, Christmas music exists on its own plain, in its own realm, and shall be judged on its own merits separate from the rest of the musical world.

So here we are. Tinsel & Lights. Really real nice. I'd say the first four tracks are one of the best leadoffs of a solo artists holiday album in a while. (but I haven't gotten to Rod Stewart's new one yet so...). Then there's the unfortunate 'In The Cold, Cold Night', which while it sounds like it would be a song about a time of year that Christmas would reside, the rhythm and the over-anxious guitar riff comes off more like a Spy Vs Spy soundtrack than anything I'd want to roast chestnuts to.

But Tracey gets you right back on track with the simply lovely piano ballad called 'Snow' and by the time the triple punch of 'Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas', the cover of Joni Mitchell's 'River' and the title track comes along she has completely redeemed herself and then some.

A pair of overly synthesized yet oddly acceptable tunes called '  Taking Down The Tree' And 'Sister Winter' close out the album and prep you for repeat listens. This is a jewel of a different color, original in sound and composition and with only that minor misstep has happily settled into the ranks of the holiday A-list. I give it an A.

Yay Christmas!