Annie Lennox - A Christmas Cornucopia

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61j-8eLLBnL.jpg


Title: A Christmas Cornucopia
Artist: Annie Lennox
Audio CD (November 16, 2010)
Original Release Date: 2010
Number of Discs: 1
Genre: Christmas
Format: Free Lossless Audio Codec


Track Listing:

01. Angels from the Realms of Glory
02. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
03. See Amid the Winter's Snow
04. Il Est Ne Le Divin Enfant
05. The First Noel
06. Lullay Lullay (Coventry Carol)
07. The Holly and the Ivy
08. In the Bleak Midwinter
09. As Joseph Was a Walking
10. Oh Little Town of Bethlehem
11. Silent Night
12. Universal Child


Amazont Description:
A Christmas Cornucopia is a collection of new, inspired interpretations of 11 traditional festive songs, rounded out by a new Lennox composition, Universal Child. The music on the album was mostly played by Lennox, in collaboration with co producer Mike Stevens, and recorded in his southwest London studio - at the bottom of his garden. But to achieve the resonance and vibrancy that were integral to Lennox's ideas for these re-energized reboots, the pair also worked with a 30-piece orchestra at Pinewood Studios. And they travelled further afield too: to South Africa, to record with the African Children's Choir, a remarkable organization with which impassioned campaigner and activist Lennox has long had a relationship. A Christmas Cornucopia is no sweetly packaged selection box. As befits its title, it offers an abundance of songs - drawn fromFrench and German traditions - and a host of ideas. On Lullay Lullay, "a lullaby I've known for years and the darkest carol I think," Lennox draws direct links between the Nativity and the plight of Africa's child soldiers. "Lullay Lullay alludes to the killing of first-born boy children by King Herod... and going back more deeply into the story of the song, I kept getting images of child soldiers in my head...The violation of children is endemic in many so places. Even though this carol is ancient, the brutality of the subject matter is just as relevant today.

Allmusic Review:
Most artists treat Christmas albums as toss-offs; something to get into the marketplace and have on the shelf when punters come in and snap up the holiday offerings. There is usually little forethought, production and arrangements are entrusted to studio stalwarts who paint by numbers. Annie Lennox doesn't fit this mold remotely. She considered a Christmas Cornucopia with all the intuitive care and devotion her other studio albums reflect. Lennox spent much of her youth singing in choirs, and that is reflected in both the song selection (all but one of these she sang as a child in choir) and arrangements. Working once more with producer Mike Stevens (who also helmed the sessions for her last offering, 2007's Songs of Mass Destruction), Lennox recorded many of the choral vocals herself by overdubbing. The pair did employ a 30-piece orchestra; they also recorded the African Children's Choir who are prominently featured throughout, especially on "The Holly and the Ivy" and the French carol "Il Est de le Divin Enfant." Textures and atmospheres are the name of the game in these interpretations, and they're employed in unusual ways: note the Middle Eastern rhythms and modalities on "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" that collide -- albeit harmoniously -- with Celtic pipe, flute, and accordion sounds. It's a fantastic track, though it does engender a minor complaint: why on earth would a vocalist of Lennox's caliber use Auto-Tune even momentarily? Other standouts here include the majestic "The Holly and the Ivy," the sparse instrumentation on "In the Bleak Midwinter," and the the dramatic darkness in the obscure carol "Lullay Lullay" that tells the Christian story of King Herod's infanticide in trying to eliminate the threat posed by the Christ child. "Silent Night" and "O Little Town of Bethlehem" are given wonderful arrangements and sung with a sincerity approaching absolute devotion, especially with the African Children's Choir underscoring Lennox's voice. The lone original here, "Universal Child," is the lead single (proceeds are being donated to the Annie Lennox Foundation); it's a beautifully written and arranged pop song, delivered soulfully and enigmatically; it is worth the price of the album itself. A Christmas Cornucopia is a real contender for best Christmas album of 2010.