Good Comps, Sucky Caffeines

Mostly I was drawn to this compilation because I thought we could use some Christmas tunes by the Shins and Calexico and Andrew Bird. But it's the tracks I originally overlooked that ended up really charming me and pretty much the whole thing passed the holly jolly test. I noticed I was really digging it during Black Prairie's version of '(Everybody’s Waitin’ For) the Man With the Bag', very nicely done. And even tho I haven't ever cared for their regular recordings I fell in love with The Civil Wars 'I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day'. They even class it up a little with Irma Thomas singing 'May Ev’ry Day Be Christmas' and an albeit lukewarm 'The Christmas Song' from Paul McCartney, but c'mon, he's Paul McCartney.

From there the album only got better, taking sage advice from Nick Hornsby and sticking the real magnets towards the end of your playlist applies even to holiday albums. The Head And The Heart do a lovely rendition of 'What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?' and I was kind of taken aback by The Heartless Bastards take on 'Blue Christmas'. Really really nice. Slight adjustments to rhythm and additional grooves here and there, like AgesAndAges 'We Need A Little Christmas' and Eleanor Friedberger's typical deadpan delivery fits perfectly on the open letter tune 'Santa, Bring My Baby Back (To Me)'. The only thing that was off was the lead track by fun. I know they're the big thing this year but this 'Sleigh Ride' is a little overinflated and frankly out of place on this album.

Just looking at the artists involved with this compilation I was completely expecting a loud, verging on obnoxious collection of overly experimental and misguided attempts of being secularly merry. But that really wasn't the case. Rufus Wainwright partners up with Sharon Van Etten for the classic boy/girl duet 'Baby It's Cold Outside' made famous by Zooey Deschanel and Will Ferrel and Calexico does a song infamous in Celtic circles called 'Green Grows The Holly' and makes possibly one of their most gorgeous records ever. And I didn't even mention Andrew Bird's 'Auld Lang Syne'.

Starbucks gets a 'A' for their ability to put together a good compilation but still a 'D' on their bitter coffee.