MCA Nashville's discount-priced
20th Century Masters - The Christmas Collection: The Best of Loretta Lynn is nothing more or less than a straight reissue of
Lynn's 1966 holiday album Country Christmas. There are those who would like to set every Christmas album ever recorded ablaze over a Yuletide fireplace, but let's hope these cheerless arsonists overlook this already well-roasted chestnut of a record. If anyone has the personality to make a good Christmas record, it would be
Loretta Lynn. But there are surprise goodies in her gift bag, as she even manages to come up with three great original numbers based on the holiday, the best of the batch being "To Heck with Ole Santa Claus." Her playful side helps her extract nice feelings from too-familiar numbers such as "Silver Bells" and "Frosty the Snowman." And
Lynn is such a great vocalist that she's able to give both
Elvis Presley and
Bing Crosby a run for the mistletoe as she takes Christmas from shades of blue to white and back again. Some good country session pickers hold things together whenever she stops for a holiday smooch. ~ Eugene Chadbourne