Gold and Green - Sugarland

Nov 13, 2009 03:11 pm

Christmas collections can present a slippery slope—albums of covers rarely stand up to the classics and sets of all new material struggle to capture the comfort and joy of the season.

Georgia's Sugarland rose to great heights in 2009 -- their 2008 album Love on the Inside reached platinum status, they recorded a prime-time network television special called Live on the Inside, which was then released in numerous packages that all sold well, and have sold out live shows globally. Therefore it seems to make sense for the group to release a stop-gap before the year runs out in lieu of a new studio album. Gold and Green is a hybrid holiday recording. It contains ten tracks, five of which are Christmas standards and include a country boogie version of "Winter Wonderland," a "backwoods" version of "O Come O Come Emmanuel," and a reverent acoustic version of "Silent Night," sung bilingually in Spanish and English. The other five cuts are originals themed for the holidays. The set's opening track, "City of Silver Dreams," is an homage to New York City at Christmastime, and a hard luck love song. On "Comin' Home," rhythm & blues roots to compete with a gospel chorus in the refrains. "Maybe Baby," sung by Kristian Bush, sounds like a track left off Love on the Inside. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide