Reviewed by Tony Cummings

I think the album title’s naff and I don’t care for narrator Gabriel Woolf’s over theatric recitations which break up some of the songs here. But there is still some wonderful stuff here. The Joyful Company Of Singers reach sublime heights on “O Magnum Mysterium” by Tomas Luis da Victoria while Dame Felicity Lott’s arching soprano tells the story of “The Three Kings” by Cornelius. The poetry here is of mixed quality, TS Eliot’s “The Journey Of The Magi” powerful, Laurie Lee’s “Christmas In Seville”, set to music by American composer Samuel Barber, bleak and rather out of place here. But when everything comes together like on Peter Broadbent’s beautiful arrangement of “Silent Night” the effect is wonderful. ‘Plum Pudding’ is rather a curate’s egg.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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