*Traditional, new arrangement by Emory Gordy, Jr. To View Lyrics And Hear A Brief Sound Clip Enter The Song Title In Our Search Engine
"I had taken time off from the road, and I rode through the mountains around Pikeville, where I grew up, and got the chance to feel it all again,"she says. "It stirred up the emotions of hearing my mother singing some of her favorite Christmas songs around the house--'Silent Night' and 'Away In A Manger.' Then there were the happier tunes I'd hear my brothers and sisters singing, or hear on the radio or the record player. It was then that we started to talk about a Christmas album." Patty and Emory listened to their own extensive collection of Christmas albums of all types, comparing arrangements and looking for just the right mix of moods and approaches. The arrangements on "Bluegrass, White Snow - A Mountain Christmas" are acoustic, and the feel ranges from somber reverence in the some of the classics to unadulterated mountain joy in "Christmas Time's A Comin'" and "Santa Train." The latter, celebrating the train that had been so important in spurring the album, is one of three songs written by Patty and Emory. The others are "Christmas Day At My House" and the title cut, which refers to her home state of Kentucky. All of it contains echoes of Patty's deep appreciation for the season and its place in her childhood memories. "The world is beautiful in a child's eyes," she says, "and Christmas is just magical. My mama and daddy had a hard time, but they always tried to find a way to make a Christmas for the kids. Even if they had to borrow from the company store or take a loan somewhere, they would find a way to buy us a special toy -- a doll was always a big deal to me. But as long as we had good food, warm clothes, music, and a warm place for the family, I think that's what mattered to mama and daddy the most." Patty once again calls on some of her friends, a circle including some of contemporary music's best. Patty is joined for duets by Rebecca Lynn Howard on "Little Drummer Boy" and Jon Randall on "Joy To The World," and background vocalists include Claire Lynch and Trisha Yearwood on "Silent Night" and "The First Noel," Emmylou Harris on "Joy To The World," Vince Gill and Amy Grant on "Silver Bells," and Dolly Parton and Ricky Skaggs on the title cut.
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