The Christmas Song
Countless singers have recorded the now-famous title track to this 14-song collection, but none have explored its evocative nuances as fully as the man who first brought it into our living rooms--Nat King Cole. Then again, his honeyed throat and refined delivery allowed him to make just about any song his own--even ubiquitous carols such as "O Holy Night" and "Adeste Fideles." Cole's gift--the thing that made him beloved by grandmas and jazzbos alike--was his ability to conjure images so vivid, you need only close your eyes in order to see, say, a snow-swept town square ("Caroling, Caroling") or that holy scene from 2,000 years ago ("Away in a Manger").--David Sprague