What would the Christmas season be without a new crop of recordings? The bins are overflowing with seasonal CDs, but three of this year’s output really stand out:

Young Nanaimo pop diva Allison Crowe’s recently released Tidings collects surprisingly moving versions of traditional Christmas favourites such as Silent Night, In the Bleak Midwinter, It Came Upon a Midnight Clear, The First Noel and O Holy Night and truly transcendent versions of Joni Mitchell’s River and Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah.

Crowe not only makes these Canadian treasures her own, she does almost as much with Lennon and McCartney’s In My Life and Let It Be, the Stones’ Shine a Light and Sarah McLachlan’s Angel.  

With each recording Crowe becomes a more stunning vocalist. She's got a very big voice, and she's learning how to use it to embody a song. This high concept seasonal sampler is a triumph. Highly recommended.