I'm not a connoisseur of New Age music, but I've enjoyed Liz Story's piano improvisations. This album is a collection of mostly traditional English, French, German and Italian carols, some familiar, some unfamiliar. There's also the occasional 20th century tune (The Christmas Song, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas), but most come from much, much earlier. Story is accompanied by an acoustic bass on 6 of the 14 tracks; the rest are solo piano. If you like George Winston's albums Winter or December, you should pick this up. The only thing that bothers me is the fact that a few of the tracks fade out at the end which seems like a strange production choice for solo piano.
Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did not chart
Tracks: It all sounds pretty much the same, so if you like one, you like 'em all. Highlights for me include Il Es Ne Le Divin Enfant, O Come O Come Immanuel/Personent Hodie, and a great take on In The Bleak Midwinter. I also enjoy The Truth From Above which includes O Sacred Head Now Wounded which serves as a gentle reminder about how the Christmas story ends.
Personal Memory Associated with this CD: Generic Christmas memories: lighted tree, fire place, hot cocoa, quiet nights of reflection. This is a disc you listen to alone, not in the car while looking at Christmas lights in the neighborhood.
Previously revisited for the blog:
Speechless (1988)
Part Of Fortune (1986)
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