Artist: The Ray Conniff Singers
Album Title: Christmas with Conniff
Genre/Style: Choral
Release Year: 1959
This is about as far from hip as you can get. I’m pretty sure you would have heard this stuff on The Lawrence Welk Show. But if there’s any time of year when you can revel in this kind of square, nonthreatening nonsense, it’s Christmas. And there’s some nostalgic value for me because the Christmas tape in constant rotation during my childhood had a couple of Conniff classics on it.
So yes, your grandparents will probably like this album more than you will. And the general lack of harmonies starts to sound a little sinister. But it’s undeniably cheerful stuff, which certainly sets the right kind of holiday tone. There’s a terribly unlistenable version of “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer”, but everything else is just hokey, old-time fun. Yeah, I’m not buying it either.
Rating: 
This stuff sounded dated when it was recorded half a century ago.
