Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album, Vol. 3

Personnel: Onitsha Shaw, Missi Hale, David Loucks, Tim Davis , Cory Monteith, Chris Colfer, Storm Lee, Kevin McHale, Lea Michele , Jenna Ushkowitz, Heather Morris, Alex Anders, Chord Overstreet, Mark Salling, Naya Rivera, Kala Balch, Darren Criss, Alex Newell, Luke Edgemon, Emily Benford, Melissa Benoist, Jacob Artist, Blake Jenner, Becca Tobin, Nikki Anders, Nikki Leonti, Peer Astrom , Tiffany Palmer, Jeanette Olsson, Windy Wagner, Adam Anders (vocals).
Audio Mixers: Peer Astrom ; Henrik Edenhed.
Recording information: Chalice Recording Studios, Hollywood, CA; RFT Studios, Calabases, CA.
Arrangers: Peer Astrom ; Adam Anders.
For the most part, Glee: The Music: The Christmas Album, Vol. 3 manages to avoid being too slick and saccharine, traps that can befall many holiday music collections (as well as Glee soundtracks). It helps that this is one of the most traditional sets of Christmas and Hanukkah songs that the show's cast has tackled in terms of song choices and performances; it's hard to go wrong with a softly jazzy version of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," and even more recent songs like "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" and "Feliz Navidad" were accepted as part of the pop holiday songbook decades before this album's release. The collection also makes good and diverse use of the cast's voices, with new member Melissa Benoist holding her own on a simple but lovely version of "The First Noel" that balances out glitzier moments like Lea Michele's "I'll Be Home for Christmas." While it may be the shortest of the show's holiday comps, song for song Glee: The Music: The Christmas Album, Vol. 3 is one of the best. ~ Heather Phares