SUMMARY: RUNNING TIME: 1 Hour, 1 Min.
Released in 1996 by Atlantic Records and Lava Records, Christmas Eve and Other Stories is Trans-Siberian Orchestra’s debut studio album. Re-imagining traditional holiday fare and melding it with original material into a rock-metal symphonic opera, the seventeen tracks are the following:
- An Angel Came Down (3:51)
- O Come All Ye Faithful / O Holy Night – instrumental (4:18)
- A Star to Follow (3:48)
- First Snow – instrumental (3:52)
- The Silent Nutcracker – instrumental (2:21)
- A Mad Russian’s Christmas – instrumental (4:41)
- The Prince of Peace (3:32)
- Christmas Eve / Sarajevo 12/24 – instrumental (3:24)
- Good King Joy (6:34)
- Ornament (3:36)
- The First Noel – instrumental (0:54)
- Old City Bar (6:17)
- Promises to Keep (2:40)
- This Christmas Day (4:19)
- An Angel Returned (3:51)
- O Holy Night (2:39)
- God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen (1:15).
REVIEW:
Christmas Eve and Other Stories is a gem capable of appealing to any age demographic. Case in point: up-tempo instrumental tracks # 4, # 6 and, most definitely, # 8 are superb! This album provides an ideal rock antidote for anyone needing to re-energize his/her holiday spirit.
PACKAGING:
The CD is well-protected in a standard CD case.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 9 Stars
