Various Artists: Home for Christmas

There’s too much Christmas music. Period. Although no kid can ever get too many Christmas presents, it doesn’t take long for most adults to overdose on holiday sounds. That’s because so much of it is assembly line, prepackaged junk. In stark contrast, the natural sounding Home for Christmas: Voices from the Heartland is such a welcome addition to the seasonal music section of your CD rack. These are blues, country, and folk songs that come from the heart instead of the pocketbook. You just gotta love hearing Sam More, one of the original soul men, welcoming St. Nick with “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town”, and Deana Carter giving us a new version of “The Christmas Song”. Granted, Leon Redbone sounds weird as always, even with “Blue Christmas”, but he’s also fun in small doses. Furthermore, there’s the classic Charles Brown take on “Please Come Home for Christmas”, and a horn-drenched “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” from Roomful of Blues. And best of all, it all feels like home.