Description
Believe is the fifth studio album and first Christmas album by the American singer Natalie Grant, released on Curb Records in October 2005. The album was recorded and mixed by David Schober, assisted by Steven Beers and Scott Kidd, at SoulFuel Studios in Nashville and the Sound Kitchen in Franklin, Tennessee; with Bernie Herms producing for SoulFuel Productions. Strings arranged and conducted by Rob Mathes and performed by The Nashville String Machine at The Sound Kitchen.
2006 Re-issue
Christmas albums can too easily slide into slushy sentimentality or banal, unimaginative rehashing of secular Christmas favourites. Natalie Grant dips more than a toe into both in this reissue of her 2005 Christmas release, which when originally released charted at number 13 on Billboard Top Heatseekers chart. «O Come All Ye Faithful» and «O Little Town Of Bethlehem» showcase Natalie’s voice without breaking much new ground. Sadly, «Let It Snow» and «Santa Claus Is Coming To Town» sound like the sort of muzak you hear in supermarkets in December. However the title track lifts the whole album and earns it a good three squares more than most of the rest of the album deserves. With vocals reminiscent of Celine Dion at times Natalie soars and swoops though one of the best new Christmas songs I have heard in years. «What Christmas Means To Me» is an over-the-top Motown pastiche, but the final tracks, especially the medley «Silver Bells/Savior Came For Me/O Holy Night» again lift the standard. If you’re looking for something new next Christmas, don’t dismiss this album for its weaker tracks; the stronger ones more than compensate. [Nigel Harris, Cross Rhythms, February 2007]
> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/believe/82484926)
CD tracklist:
01. O Come All Ye Faithful – 3:39
02. Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! – 2:27
03. Santa Claus Is Coming To Town – 2:35
04. I Believe – 5:14
05. O Little Town Of Bethlehem – 4:39
06. Joy To The World – 4:31
07. What Christmas Means To Me – 3:41
08. Silver Bells / Savior Came For Me / O Holy Night (Medley) – 8:48
09. One Child – 6:08
10. Sweet Little Jesus Boy – 3:52
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