Doris Day

Complete Christmas Collection from Collectors' Choice obviously promises every Christmas track recorded by Doris Day, and it delivers as well. The bulk of the program comes from 1964's The Doris Day Christmas Album, but it's filled out with tracks going back to her days with Les Brown & His Orchestra from 1946 (a rendition of "The Christmas Song"), several solo sides from the early '50s, and a few from the late '50s or early '60s. As for the music, Day's voice shines over the light and breezy arrangements; Christmas has often been a time to glory in the familiar, and few voices were as familiar as Doris Day's during the '50s and '60s. Most of her choices are gentle ballads, songs like "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" that make it easy to stay inside (preferably in front of a roaring fire). The arrangements, most of them by Pete King, are solid adult pop numbers, draped with a curtain of soft strings. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide