So I have a modest collection of Christmas music on CD - here it is, in no particular order. With a few exceptions, you can get these if you know your way around Amazon.com

Vince Guaraldi Trio - A Charlie Brown Christmas (Fantasy)
the original soundtrack CD - no comment needed!

* Vince Guaraldi Trio - A Charlie Brown Christmas - Remastered edition (Fantasy)
I picked this up out of curiosity in 2006. Charlie Brown purists howled in protest at this updated edition of the classic album. This new version cleans up the sound nicely and includes several alternate takes. Disappointing is the fact that the wrong version of "Linus and Lucy" somehow made it onto the CD.

Cyrus Chestnut and Friends - A Charlie Brown Christmas (Atlantic)
Jazz pianist Cyrus Chestnut and his trio collaborate with some of their jazz friends for this take on the above-mentioned CD. I'm a jazz fan so I really, really love this CD.

Bruce Cockburn - Christmas (Columbia)
For the Canadian in all of us - I'm not familiar with Cockburn's other CDs but his acoustic versions of traditional and French-Canadian carols are pretty darn good.

Travelin' Light - Christmas With Travelin' Light (Telarc)
Guitarist/banjoist Frank Vignola and Tuba-ist Sam Pilafian released this quirky, off-the-wall CD in the early '90s. Their version of "Jingle Bells" is worth the price of the CD, all by itself--Pilafian's tuba solo in the piece cracks me up every time I hear it. It's 1930s/1940s-Django Reinhardt swing jazz. Come on, everyone should hear a tuba fart out "Frosty The Snowman" just once!

Various Artists - Noel (Via)
Veteran Christian alt-rockers Derri Daugherty and Steve Hindalong of The Choir got together with some of their like-minded artist friends for this low-budget but high-quality indie CD. It's long out-of-print but worth the effort if you can track it down. Featured artists include Michael Pritzl (The Violet Burning), Kevin Smith (DC Talk), Carolyn Arends, and Buddy and Julie Miller.

Cambridge Singers - Christmas Day in the Morning (Collegium)
Robert Shaw Chamber Singers - Angels On High (Telarc)
To satisfy your classical music/traditional carols urges, I recommend these two CDs. Choral music aficianados should be familiar with the John Rutter and Robert Shaw canons.

Take 6 - He is Christmas (Reprise)
This was the first Christmas album that Take 6 did. The acapella cuts are excellent, their version of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" with The Yellowjackets is especially scrumptious.

Phil Keaggy - Majesty and Wonder (Myrrh)
Virtuoso guitarist Phil Keaggy collaborates with the London Symphony Orchestra for this instrumental guitar album. Highly recommended.

Broken Records - The Broken Christmas (Broken)
Another long out-of-print gem from this late-1980s Christian independent record label. If you were a fan of the west-coast Christian rock movement of the mid-to-late 1980s you'll appreciate this CD. I happened upon it in a used-CD shop a few years ago. Some of the music is sadly dated, but the cuts with Gene Eugene and Ojo Taylor are first-rate.

Mel Tormé - Christmas Songs
Recipe for Christmas bliss - Light the Yule Log, pour some Eggnog, and turn up The Velvet Fog. His rendering of "Christmastime Is Here" is my very favorite of all.

First Call - An Evening in December (Dayspring)
First Call - An Evening in December, Volume 2 (Dayspring)
These 2 albums capture the acapella vocal trio at the peak of their 1980s power. The first CD is really the only necessity here - the second doesn't add much and the arrangements tend to be brassy and cheesy. Curiously, First Call didn't do any more acapella projects after these.

Eddie Higgins Trio - Christmas Songs (Sunnyside)
This is the CD that every jazz fan wanted but couldn't get last year. It was released only in Japan. Eddie Higgins is a veteran jazz pianist and this CD really swings. You don't have to be a jazz fan to get into this CD. Luckily, Sunnyside Records picked it up in 2004 and it's now available everywhere.

* Eddie Higgins Trio - Christmas Songs II (Venus)
Second volume of instrumental Christmas music, released to Japan in 2006. I plucked a copy off of eBay a few weeks ago. This set is decidedly more subdued and formulaic than the first one. Probably due to the use of a different rhythm section. Perfect for during or after Christmas dinner.

* Don Peris - Brighter Visions Beam Afar (Jemez Mountain)
Don Peris is the longtime and current guitarist for The Innocence Mission. This is a quiet , gentle instrumental offering of Christmas hymns arranged for solo guitar.

* Over The Rhine - Snow Angels (Great Speckled Dog)
Fans of OTR will love this, their second Christmas CD that released in 2006. It's a decidedly different holiday CD that the average listener probably wouldn't dig but if you're a fan...

You iTunes people out there should seek out and buy the song "The Last Month of the Year" (as in 'when was Jesus born?') by The Fairfield Four - it's on their 1992 CD "Standing in the Safety Zone." It's old-fashioned acapella gospel sung by these old masters of their craft with help from The Nashville Bluegrass Band.

So there you have it.