Formerly one-half of Everything But the Girl, Tracey and bandmate/hubby Ben Watt come together in 2012 to celebrate the season. Their previous work ranged from acoustic pop-rock to jazzy songcraft to dance-floor anthems, but this album isn't very rock-oriented, it's more in the acoustic and pop realms. That said, Tracey is a fine vocalist who doesn't try to diva up the proceedings, she uses her excellent voice to serve the songs she's singing. She contributes two original songs to this set, "Joy," a warm opening ballad of celebration with a hint of foreboding in the new year, and the title song, a traditional-sounding song celebrating, with restraint, a New York Christmas, a sentiment that might resound a bit more in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. The rest of the album is 10 well-chosen covers, with "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," featuring the original lyrics, being the only traditional selection. Scritti Politti's "Snow In Sun" is one of those covers, and that band's Green Gartside performs on a cover of Low's "Taking Down the Tree." Tracey also performs Stephin Merritt's "Like a Snowman," Randy Newman's "Snow," Ron Sexsmith's "Maybe This Christmas," the White Stripes' "In the Cold, Cold Night," Sufjan Stevens' "Sister Winter," a nicely orchestrated version of Joni Mitchell's "River," and "Hard Candy Christmas," from "Best Little Whorehouse in Texas." While I don't recommend it as a rock album, it's a fine collection of alternative Christmas performances, and it refutes the commonly voiced complaint that there aren't any good modern holiday songs. Should add that there's a really elaborate vinyl package being offered only in the UK at this point; the US vinyl version on Merge is, according to the release, a "simpler" version.
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