This Yuletide set from Sony/Legacy delivers 15 holiday cuts from the original neon decade. The selection features a mix of '80s star power and second-tier acts with artists like
Whitney Houston ("Do You Hear What I Hear?") and
Wham! ("Last Christmas") representing the former and
the Waitresses ("Christmas Wrapping") and
Fishbone ("Slick Nick, You Devil You") the latter. Three decades on, tracks like
New Kids on the Block's schlocky "This One's for the Children" are best left on the shelf and
the Bangles' cover of
Simon & Garfunkel's "Hazy Shade of Winter," while nicely done, isn't really a Christmas song. Overall, though, songs like
Bob & Doug McKenzie's goofy "Twelve Days of Christmas" and
Run-D.M.C.'s "Christmas in Hollis" are still entertaining enough to repackage for another generation. ~ Timothy Monger