The film "Ray" will certainly inspire people to listen to the man sing "What I'd Say (Part 1)," "Hit the Road Jack," "I Can't Stop Loving You," and his other classics, it is also the holiday season and that time is the right time for listening to Ray Charles sing Christmas songs. "The Spirit of Christmas" was produced in 1985 and now that it is on CD we are treated to a bonus track, namely a nice little duet with Betty Carter on "Baby, It's Cold Outside." The Raeletts are around for backing vocals, supported by the Jack Halloran Choir as well. All you need is a tree to trim and some chestnuts roasting on an open fire (even though that song is not on this album).
"The Spirit of Christmas" is a real mixed back of holiday songs, but for the most part the sacred, such as "What Child Is This?", takes a bit of a back seat to more fun songs like "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town," "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," and "All I Want for Christmas." Certainly Charles can have as much fun as anyone adding a touch of soul to such songs and they are everything you would expect them to be, but you will probably find the lesser known songs more interesting, such as "That Spirit of Christmas" and "Christmas in My Heart." The biggest surprise is probably "The Little Drummer Boy," simply because I would not have thought that was a song suited to Charles' vocal style. I have to think it is strategic that this album starts off with Charles surprising us with his initial song selections before he provides the expected holiday treats.