Thirty-nine big note piano arrangements. Titles: * Angels We Have Heard on High * The First Noel * Jingle Bells * Jolly Old St. Nicholas * O Holy Night * Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town * We Wish You a Merry Christmas

When Bing Crosby’s "White Christmas" debuted in 1942, no one imagined that a holiday song would top the charts year after year. One of the best-selling singles ever released, it remains on rotation at tree lighting ceremonies across the country, in crowded shopping malls on Black Friday, and at warm diners on lonely Christmas Eve nights. Over the years, other favorites have been added to America’s annual playlist, including Elvis Presley’s "Blue Christmas," the King Cole Trio’s "The Christmas Song," Gene Autry’s "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," Willie Nelson’s "Pretty Paper," and, of course, Elmo & Patsy’s "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer." Viewing American holiday values through the filter of familiar Christmas songs, Ronald Lankford examines popular culture, consumerism, and the dynamics of the traditional American family. He surveys more than seventy-five years of songs and reveals that the “modern American Christmas” has carried a complex and sometimes contradictory set of meanings. Interpreting tunes against the backdrop of the eras in which they were first released, he identifies the repeated themes of nostalgia, commerce, holiday blues, carnival, and travesty that underscore so much beloved music. This first full-length analysis of the lyrics, images, and commercial forces inextricably linked to Yuletide music hits the heart of what many Americans think Christmas is--or should be.

(Faber Piano Adventures ). Adult Piano Adventures Christmas Book 2 offers sophisticated-sounding holiday music, pianistically arranged for the early intermediate player and organized into three sections: Traditional Christmas Carols, Popular Christmas Songs, and Seasonal Favorites. Contents include: Angels We Have Heard on High * Away in a Manger * Silent Night * The First Noel * What Child Is This * Pat-a-Pan * O Little Town of Bethlehem * O Come, All Ye Faithful * God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen * Joy to the World * Hark! The Herald Angels Sing * Winter Wonderland * Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! * Sleigh Ride * and more. Online access to audio recordngs of the piano selections is included, as well as orchestrated accompaniments for play-along fun.

(Faber Piano Adventures ). Through sacred carols, humorous Santa songs, and winter favorites, adult beginners and those reacquainting with the keyboard can celebrate with the best songs of the season. Adult Piano Adventures Christmas Book 1 features three sections: Beginning Christmas Songs, Christmas Songs in the Key of C major, and Christmas Songs in the key of G major. Contents include: We Wish You a Merry Christmas * Angels We Have Heard on High * Away in a Manger * Jingle Bells * We Three Kings of Orient Are * (There's No Place Like) Home for the Holidays * It Came Upon the Midnight Clear * O Little Town of Bethlehem * Frosty the Snowman * Jingle-Bell Rock * I'll Be Home for Christmas * Little Drummer Boy * Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas * and more. Online access to audio recordings of the piano selections is included, as well as orchestrated accompaniments for play-along fun.

Leroy Anderson's "Sleigh Ride" is a holiday favorite, and this setting for advanced piano duet gives it a fresh twist. It begins with Anderson's jingling melody and some musical banter between the primo and secondo players, and then it launches into a series of variations that take the listener on a journey through a variety of styles, from gently swirling, impressionistic arpeggios to a triumphant coda with brilliant, virtuosic passagework. Audiences will enjoy a number of other musical surprises along the way.

Christmas is not going as planned for the two women in this pair of romance stories, set on the historic Great Plains. Will the spirit of the season warm their hearts--or will they get left out in the cold?

A sleigh ride on Ice Mountain: "For solitary toy-maker Sebastian Christner, hiring Kate Zook as his new housekeeper is simply the right thing to do. Now she can support her special-needs brother. But one taste of her independent spirit is showing him undreamed-of holiday joy--and making him long to give her a home for always"--Page [4] of cover.