Martina McBride Singles Rankdown 2.0 (Finished!!!)

[castleoblivion26]

I'm not a fan of Martina's new Christmas album unfortunately. This is the only correct choice for last place. Now bring "Marry Me" next!

[schnetzka]

Can I just say that I didn't notice her vocal decline until Reckless so if it's true that the laryngitis is what started it back in 2011, she hid it well on Everlasting...okay moving on lol.

[tim]

Oct 8, 2020 19:02:14 GMT -5 bboat11 said:

tim seems to be the only one in the entire world who actually prefers Martina's new Christmas album to her first one.... It resulted in him being the highest ranker for IBTLALLC.

Prior to The Joy of Christmas Rankdown I had never listened to Martina's first holiday album White Christmas, so I think for most of the participants there was likely a certain sense of nostalgia wrapped up in that one (much like there is for me regarding George's first holiday album in 1986). Not only do I absolutely love Christmas music, but I also happen to really enjoy big band holiday albums in general so I immediately took a liking to It's the Holiday Season. I know I'm in the minority when it comes to this opinion, but I happen to prefer Martina's most recent Christmas release and "It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas" has certainly become a go-to favorite of mine.

On a side note...can you believe it's been two years since we did that rankdown?!?

Oct 8, 2020 19:08:18 GMT -5 taylor said:

(btw I credit Tim with the idea for doing album showcases in the Carrie RD)

Well, truth be told we can both thank bboat11 as I took my cue for him. Those aren't necessarily done in every artist rankdown, but I really appreciated him doing that for both the Reba and George singles rankdowns.

[taylor]

bboat11: goes out of town for three days, leaving reveals in waiting

also bboat11: comes back to town to reveal exactly one song

[bboat11]

Oct 8, 2020 19:08:18 GMT -5 taylor said:

Oct 8, 2020 19:04:15 GMT -5 bboat11 said:

Now wait a damn minute. I just realized I have no idea how I want to do album write-ups yet! I didn't even register that we were losing an entire album so quickly

Are you the only one out of tim and now myself who hasn't done those yet?   edit: oh never mind! I stand corrected 


(btw I credit Tim with the idea for doing album showcases in the Carrie RD and I will be doing so going forward in 2021 with the Darius Rucker/Luke Bryan RDs because I just like the idea of showcasing the album tracks as well, particularly in instances where the singles were...not particularly the greatest lol)

I see Tim already corrected you, but nope, I've probably done more album showcases than anyone else!!! Lol between Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Reba McEntire, and George Strait, that's probably what, 80 albums 😂 No, my hesitation this time is because this is my first artist Rankdown for an album series that is already completed. Like, we've already done an album tracks rankdown and everything. Do I showcase album tracks? Write down the album rankdown results, etc?

Also, for the record, castleoblivion26 is probably the one who deserves credit for introducing album showcases to artist rankdowns. He really set the bar high with the first Martina singles rankdown!! Then I did it with Tim McGraw right after that :)

[bboat11]

Oct 8, 2020 19:14:27 GMT -5 schnetzka said:

Can I just say that I didn't notice her vocal decline until Reckless so if it's true that the laryngitis is what started it back in 2011, she hid it well on Everlasting...okay moving on lol.

Well it was taylor that said 2011. I think it was more like late 2013/early 2014. All of her Eleven tours and the George Strait retirement tour were perfect as ever, but it was the Everlasting tour when everything started to very obviously go downhill. Towards the beginning of the tour, they filmed a special where she was perfect as ever at the beginning, but started to sound a little tired by the end of the show.

She put a mashup of "Whatever You Say"/"Where Would You Be" in the setlist, and this song is a perfect case study for what was happening with her voice on that tour! This first video was in June of 2014, and she still sounds amazing, but just kinda tired like it's been a long show or something.



In this second video, by October of 2014, she doesn't even sound like the same person. She is sooooooo strained and uncomfortable, and they even seemed to slow the song down to give her enough time to ease her way up to every note...



So if I had to guess, I'm thinking it probably happened sometime in 2014, but she continued to push through with her fairly large Everlasting tour, very quickly destroying her voice in a matter of months.

Honestly, I have never put this much thought into it or paid much attention to the dates on these concert videos, but seeing the difference between June and October of the same year is SHOCKING!!!!

Of course she was still able to keep up appearances for awhile. Like, she must have rested a bit after the Everlasting tour and then the Reckless album didn't sound noticeably bad or touched up or anything. It was in late 2016/2017 when it got even worse. That was when she got to do that "I Will Always Love You" duet with Carrie Underwood at the CMA Awards, and sounded so uncomfortable and pained just trying to sing the low notes in the verses. Followed by that epically horrible rendition of the National Anthem at the Nashville Predators game in mid-2017.

[bboat11]

But anyway, like I said, she has very obviously been working on getting things right, because when I saw her in July of last year she was amazing!! Obviously couldn't belt the way she used to, but she was sooooo comfortable and confident and happy. She honestly looked downright radiant up on that stage!

She hasn't looked this comfortable and confident on stage in at least a decade, tbh  None of the strained postures and pained looks that she gave off in the above videos.

Edit: Lol sorry the pictures are so big!

[bboat11]

Album: It's The Holiday Season (2018)

Tracklist:
1. Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
2. Most Wonderful Time Of The Year
3. Winter Wonderland
4. It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas
5. Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer
6. Happy Holiday/It's The Holiday Season
7. Home For The Holidays
8. Frosty The Snowman
9. My Favorite Things


Performance in this rankdown:
50. It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

---

It's The Holiday Season FINALLY came out in 2018, after years and years of Martina hinting that she might be ready to make a new Christmas album any time!! I remember being absolutely THRILLED when she first hinted at a second Christmas album. It was around 2011/2012, when "Please Come Home For Christmas" was released, followed by her adding several more modern and rocking Christmas songs to her annual Joy of Christmas tour ("All I Want For Christmas Is You", "Run Run Rudolph", "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)", etc.). But an album never came, and it was basically several years of me getting my hopes up only to be let down :(

By the time she FINALLY announced this album, I was much less excited because I knew the state of her voice, and it had been so long since 2012 that she decided to go an entirely different direction from what was originally expected. I do like big band Christmas music, and these arrangements are all well done...but I have a feeling if she had made a second Christmas album in 2012 like she initially wanted to, it would have been much more modern and commercial, like the way "Please Come Home For Christmas" sounds. An entire album of songs like that and the ones she added to her tour would have been amazing!!!

---

SPOILER: Click to show

{Its Beginning To Look A Lot Like Tractors}
tim -
Juanca -
someguy -
Troublemaker -
schnetzka -
toomuchboy -
taylor -
Kanenrá:ke -
fearlessarrow -
ClevelandRox -
CoJoFan -
Ginger Spice -
bboat11 -
austin -
George Strait Junkie -
.indulgecountry -
castleoblivion26 -
fireflies -
kansasmeetsmo -
codyj100 -
Cody Wants Out... -

[bboat11]

Since I mentioned it........






I would have loved to get a whole album with this sound At least we have this song though! It fits so perfectly alongside her other Christmas music despite being more electric guitar heavy rather than orchestra or big band.

I also seriously considered including this song in this rankdown, as it is one of her more noteworthy and recent Christmas singles. But in the interest of not flooding y'all with Christmas songs, I decided to just stick with entries from her two main albums.

[bboat11]

49. "Silver Bells"

Album: White Christmas (1 of 2)

Year: 1998

Vocal Range: B3 - B4

Placement in the previous rankdown: N/A

Placement in the album rankdown: 1 of 16



Total: 904
Average: 43.05
Std Dev: 6.24 (4th smallest)


Ginger Spice - 30
bboat11 - 30
someguy - 35
ClevelandRox - 36
fireflies - 38
Juanca - 40
toomuchboy - 41
castleoblivion26 - 41
taylor - 43
Cody Wants Out... - 44
tim - 45
.indulgecountry - 46
kansasmeetsmo - 46
CoJoFan - 47
austin - 47
schnetzka - 48
Troublemaker - 49
fearlessarrow - 49
codyj100 - 49
Kanenrá:ke - 50
George Strait Junkie - 50

SPOILER: Click to show

{Songs Remaining}
(I Never Promised You A) Rose Garden
A Broken Wing
Anyway
Blessed
Cheap Whiskey
Concrete Angel
Cry On The Shoulder Of The Road
For These Times
Girls Like Me
God’s Will
Happy Girl
Heart Trouble
How Far
How I Feel
I Just Call You Mine
I Love You
I Still Miss Someone
I’m Gonna Love You Through It
In My Daughter’s Eyes
Independence Day
It’s My Time
Just Around The Corner
Life #9
Love’s The Only House
Make Me Believe
Marry Me
My Baby Loves Me
O Holy Night
Phones Are Ringin’ All Over Town
Reckless
Ride
Safe In The Arms Of Love
Still Holding On
Swingin’ Doors
Teenage Daughters
That’s Me
The Time Has Come
There You Are
This One’s For The GIrls
Trip Around The Sun
Valentine
Whatever You Say
When God-Fearin’ Women Get The Blues
Where I Used To Have A Heart
Where Would You Be
Wild Angels
Wrong Again
Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong

[schnetzka]

I like how you're including the vocal ranges since she's such a phenomenal singer. I truly hope her voice returns to the best that it can be given the circumstances.

[bboat11]

Alright, I decided it's FINALLY time to resume some actual reveals 😂 Sorry for the weird start last night. I was having dinner at my sister's last night, but ended up needing to leave to head over there like an hour earlier than I was planning. I thought I would make it through the bottom 5, but then I lost an entire hour of planned reveal time.

The Christmas songs continue to follow the usual trajectory of Christmas songs, as "Silver Bells" joined IBTLALLC in the bottom 2 or 3 for almost the entire submission process. It was never in danger of last place, as it finished almost 60 points higher than "It's Beginning..." did, but was also not ever to mount a resurgence. That's what happens when 16 out of 21 people put a song in their bottom 10.

Martina's first Christmas album is about as CLASSIC as they come!!! While most artists get their one big Christmas hit that gets played every year, Martina has accomplished the super rare feat of creating a Christmas album where nearly EVERY song can still be heard on the radio every time December rolls around if you are in the right place at the right time. Hell, I even heard her frenetic and chaotic version of "Jingle Bells" on the radio last Christmas, which tbh kinda shook me to my core. I thought, out of all the songs to play, that would be the least likely, and yet there it was.

Of course the album has some go-to favorites for radio and fans, such as the likes of "O Holy Night", "White Christmas", and "Silver Bells", all of which can still be heard multiple times per day if you pay attention to Christmas stations. While "O Holy Night" has to share its status with other classic versions from the likes of Celine Dion and Mariah Carey, I can honestly say that I think Martina's version of "Silver Bells" has become one of the most definitive versions. The past several years I have heard it out and about more than any other Christmas song of hers. And not just on Country stations! I would argue that the majority of the population has probably heard Martina's "Silver Bells" somewhere during the holidays over the course of their life, whether they know it or not.

When I was choosing which Christmas songs to use in this rankdown, "Silver Bells" was an easy choice for all of those above reasons. It's one of the songs that has helped this album to achieve such wide multi-genre support and helped its commercial legs to remain so strong and healthy after nearly 20 years. "O Holy Night" may be more of a showstopper, but this one has a comforting nostalgic warmth to it that makes it one of those songs that I simply MUST listen to to usher in the season!!!!

It also won Martina's Christmas rankdown, so there's that.

[tim]

Oct 9, 2020 14:19:04 GMT -5 bboat11 said:

Martina's first Christmas album is about as CLASSIC as they come!!! While most artists get their one big Christmas hit that gets played every year, Martina has accomplished the super rare feat of creating a Christmas album where nearly EVERY song can still be heard on the radio every time December rolls around if you are in the right place at the right time. Hell, I even heard her frenetic and chaotic version of "Jingle Bells" on the radio last Christmas, which tbh kinda shook me to my core. I though, out of all the songs to play, that would be the least likely, and yet there it was.

There's no need to fib as we all know that you called into the radio station and requested it

[bboat11]

Oct 9, 2020 14:16:52 GMT -5 schnetzka said:

I like how you're including the vocal ranges since she's such a phenomenal singer. I truly hope her voice returns to the best that it can be given the circumstances.

Hahaha thanks! I'm such a nerd, I sat down a few years ago at a piano and figured out the vocal ranges of every song for her entire career 😂

It may not mean anything to most people, but I figured it might at least be some interesting trivia for people who know anything about voices :)

[bboat11]

Jesus, this rankdown is going to take us until next summer if I keep trying to write up 5 paragraph dissertations for every song 😂 At least it'll be fun and informative!!

[bboat11]

48. "Marry Me" - ft. Pat Monahan

Album: Eleven (1 of 3)

Year: 2012

Vocal Range: [Pat C3 - A4; Martina G3 - A4]
Billboard Country Peak: #45

Placement in the previous rankdown: 69 of 70

Placement in the album rankdown: 15 of 15




**Here's the super cheesy video of them singing this while people literally got married onstage at the 2012 ACMs**  


Total: 887
Average: 42.24
Std Dev: 6.95 (5th smallest)


CoJoFan - 23
Kanenrá:ke - 31
.indulgecountry - 36
schnetzka - 37
someguy - 38
taylor - 38
codyj100 - 38
toomuchboy - 39
Juanca - 41
Ginger Spice - 43
fireflies - 45
Troublemaker - 45
bboat11 - 47
ClevelandRox - 47
George Strait Junkie - 47
castleoblivion26 - 48
Cody Wants Out... - 48
kansasmeetsmo - 48
austin - 48
tim - 50
fearlessarrow - 50

SPOILER: Click to show

{Songs Remaining}
(I Never Promised You A) Rose Garden
A Broken Wing
Anyway
Blessed
Cheap Whiskey
Concrete Angel
Cry On The Shoulder Of The Road
For These Times
Girls Like Me
God’s Will
Happy Girl
Heart Trouble
How Far
How I Feel
I Just Call You Mine
I Love You
I Still Miss Someone
I’m Gonna Love You Through It
In My Daughter’s Eyes
Independence Day
It’s My Time
Just Around The Corner
Life #9
Love’s The Only House
Make Me Believe
My Baby Loves Me
O Holy Night
Phones Are Ringin’ All Over Town
Reckless
Ride
Safe In The Arms Of Love
Still Holding On
Swingin’ Doors
Teenage Daughters
That’s Me
The Time Has Come
There You Are
This One’s For The GIrls
Trip Around The Sun
Valentine
Whatever You Say
When God-Fearin’ Women Get The Blues
Where I Used To Have A Heart
Where Would You Be
Wild Angels
Wrong Again
Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong

[schnetzka]

Oct 9, 2020 14:22:17 GMT -5 bboat11 said:

Oct 9, 2020 14:16:52 GMT -5 schnetzka said:

I like how you're including the vocal ranges since she's such a phenomenal singer. I truly hope her voice returns to the best that it can be given the circumstances.

Hahaha thanks! I'm such a nerd, I sat down a few years ago at a piano and figured out the vocal ranges of every song for her entire career 😂

It may not mean anything to most people, but I figured it might at least be some interesting trivia for people who know anything about voices :)

The thing is, I'm a singer but I know absolutely nothing about ranges lol. I should probably teach myself that eventually haha.

[bboat11]

Well, it may not have been last place, but tim can rest easy knowing that "Marry Me" was at least the first regular single to leave us!

I honestly do not understand all the hate for the song itself, but as a single it is a definite head scratcher. The Eleven album had a lot of potential, with "Whatcha Gonna Do" and "One Night" especially just WAITING there for a release, and stuff like "Broken Umbrella" and "You Can Get Your Lovin' Right Here" also being somewhat of fan favorites!!!!! The label probably decided to go with "Marry Me" to capitalize on the CMT Crossroads hype that that song received after Martina and Train did an episode about a year prior. Kinda like the Reba/Kelly "Because Of You" duet release.

However, the Crossroads hype did NOT translate to this being what people wanted to hear on the radio. I will always think of this as the song that ended Martina's career. Stupid single choice, although it is a pretty song that I enjoy for what it is!

[tim]

Oct 9, 2020 14:36:20 GMT -5 bboat11 said:

48. "Marry Me" - ft. Pat Monahan

**Here's the super cheesy video of them singing this while people literally got married onstage at the 2012 ACMs**  

And yet somehow I can't help but to think that if given the chance you would've taken up this opportunity to be the lucky man up there on the stage being serenaded! I'd wager that if the price was right Martina would still happily oblige and do just that whenever that time comes for you lol.

Anyways, I've never much cared for this sappy song and therefore it was an easy last place for me.

[bboat11]

47. "For These Times"

Album: Waking Up Laughing (1 of 3)

Year: 2007

Vocal Range: B♭3 - E♭5
Billboard Country Peak: #35

Placement in the previous rankdown: 61 of 70

Placement in the album rankdown: 9 of 12





Total: 868
Average: 41.33
Std Dev: 7.41 (6th smallest)


Kanenrá:ke - 22
codyj100 - 28
schnetzka - 31
Troublemaker - 35
George Strait Junkie - 35
kansasmeetsmo - 39
taylor - 41
Juanca - 42
fireflies - 42
ClevelandRox - 43
Cody Wants Out... - 43
castleoblivion26 - 44
austin - 44
fearlessarrow - 44
.indulgecountry - 45
bboat11 - 45
tim - 47
CoJoFan - 49
Ginger Spice - 49
someguy - 50
toomuchboy - 50

SPOILER: Click to show

{Songs Remaining}
(I Never Promised You A) Rose Garden
A Broken Wing
Anyway
Blessed
Cheap Whiskey
Concrete Angel
Cry On The Shoulder Of The Road
Girls Like Me
God’s Will
Happy Girl
Heart Trouble
How Far
How I Feel
I Just Call You Mine
I Love You
I Still Miss Someone
I’m Gonna Love You Through It
In My Daughter’s Eyes
Independence Day
It’s My Time
Just Around The Corner
Life #9
Love’s The Only House
Make Me Believe
My Baby Loves Me
O Holy Night
Phones Are Ringin’ All Over Town
Reckless
Ride
Safe In The Arms Of Love
Still Holding On
Swingin’ Doors
Teenage Daughters
That’s Me
The Time Has Come
There You Are
This One’s For The GIrls
Trip Around The Sun
Valentine
Whatever You Say
When God-Fearin’ Women Get The Blues
Where I Used To Have A Heart
Where Would You Be
Wild Angels
Wrong Again
Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong

[bboat11]

Following on the heels of "Marry Me", we say goodbye to yet another horrible single choice that flopped and destroyed her momentum, killing an era that should have otherwise kept going strong for quite awhile longer.

Imo, the Waking Up Laughing era might be the most egregiously mishandled era of her career. While "For These Times" isn't bad in and of itself, as a single it is absolutely useless. Martina and her team HAD to have known that by this point she was receiving quite a bit of pushback and criticism for always singing "bleeding heart issue songs". "For These Times" is everything that her haters criticized her for, while also not being nearly as specific or powerful as songs like "Concrete Angel" and "A Broken Wing". The lyrics are also fairly preachy and generic. On top of that, "How I Feel" was a fluffy song that really didn't push the envelope, and also rather generic. And "Anyway", as hard hitting as it was, was also rather preachy and generic in a sense. So in other words she really needed to mix it up to regain people's attention.

The song to mix it up was sooooooo insanely obvious. "Everybody Does" is one of the easiest single choices any executive could have ever been faced with. That uptempo jam coming right on the heels of "Anyway" would have been a massive smash, mark my words!!!! And that would have opened the doors for something like "House Of A Thousand Dreams" to be a fairly successful hit as well.

This seems to be regarded as one of Martina's weakest albums among most of us here, but tbh it did NOT need to be a weak era at radio. That was 100% the fault of whoever was choosing the singles.

[taylor]

God...I should've gone to the trouble of figuring out Carrie's range on her songs in her rankdown!  :kii:

I absolutely love Martina's "Silver Bells" and you know what, it's very likely her version that I always heard as a kid whenever Christmas came around. Her vocal on it is magnificent and I agree that it offers a very comforting warmth overall, which regarding the Christmas season as a whole, is why it's my favorite time of year. I must say, hearing "Silver Bells" choked me up while doing the rankdown because I think we can all agree that Christmas is needed in 2020. We need something to feel comforted by.

[someguy]

"For These Times" is probably the worst single choice of her career. I completely agree that the Waking Up Laughing album could have had a decent run at radio. "Anyway" was a good lead single, but then the follow-up single choices were not good at all (even if I do like "How I Feel"). "Everybody Does" should have been second, and "House Of A Thousand Dreams" should have been third. Then after that, she could have released almost anything as single #4 ("Trying To Find A Reason", "How I Feel", "I'll Still Be Me", "Love Land", "Cry Cry"). "For These Times" is easily my least favourite song on the album, and I have no idea how it was ever chosen as a single.

[bboat11]

46. "O Holy Night"

Album: White Christmas (2 of 2)

Year: 1998

Vocal Range: G3 - D5
Billboard Country Peak: #41

Placement in the previous rankdown: 38 of 70

Placement in the album rankdown: 2 of 16





Total: 809
Average: 38.52
Std Dev: 11.56


Juanca - 14
ClevelandRox - 18
fireflies - 19
castleoblivion26 - 27
bboat11 - 27
Ginger Spice - 33
Cody Wants Out... - 34
toomuchboy - 35
tim - 38
taylor - 40
kansasmeetsmo - 45
austin - 46
Kanenrá:ke - 47
schnetzka - 47
fearlessarrow - 47
.indulgecountry - 47
codyj100 - 48
George Strait Junkie - 48
someguy - 49
Troublemaker - 50
CoJoFan - 50

SPOILER: Click to show

{Songs Remaining}
(I Never Promised You A) Rose Garden
A Broken Wing
Anyway
Blessed
Cheap Whiskey
Concrete Angel
Cry On The Shoulder Of The Road
Girls Like Me
God’s Will
Happy Girl
Heart Trouble
How Far
How I Feel
I Just Call You Mine
I Love You
I Still Miss Someone
I’m Gonna Love You Through It
In My Daughter’s Eyes
Independence Day
It’s My Time
Just Around The Corner
Life #9
Love’s The Only House
Make Me Believe
My Baby Loves Me
Phones Are Ringin’ All Over Town
Reckless
Ride
Safe In The Arms Of Love
Still Holding On
Swingin’ Doors
Teenage Daughters
That’s Me
The Time Has Come
There You Are
This One’s For The GIrls
Trip Around The Sun
Valentine
Whatever You Say
When God-Fearin’ Women Get The Blues
Where I Used To Have A Heart
Where Would You Be
Wild Angels
Wrong Again
Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong

[fearlessarrow]

I guess the bottom 5 isn't really surprising. "Marry Me" is zzzzz

[bboat11]

Rounding out our bottom 5, we say goodbye to our 3rd and final Christmas song. And WOW is this one a contender to have the biggest fall since the last rankdown!!!! Coming in at #38 out of 70 the first time, and 46 out of 50 now is....a 38% drop since last time I think Christmas bias has always been a thing, but it seems to be even more pronounced nowadays than it was back in the early days of rankdowns. That is the only excuse for such a huge drop for this song. Pulse hasn't suddenly started liking it less, because it managed to finish at #2 in Martina's Christmas rankdown, behind "Silver Bells" (which it also stayed well ahead of here), and has finished at #2 in multiple other Christmas-related rankdowns by now.

Martina's version of "O Holy Night" is one of the most iconic songs of her career, in terms of influence on the general public. You can hear it on the all-genre radio stations right alongside other famous diva such as Celine Dion and Mariah Carey, and to this day remains one of the most heavily-played renditions on Country radio despite nearly everybody who records a Christmas album needing to offer their take on this vocal powerhouse of a song. Several versions have come and gone through the years, and Martina's remains consistent. It even charted in like 5 or 6 different years, if I remember correctly.

Vocally, she is a perfect match for this difficult song. She has the range, the power, and the control to do it better than just about anyone else. Hell, she's even known for performing it a cappella every chance she gets!

[bboat11]

Album: White Christmas (1998, 1999, and 2007)

Tracklist:
(1998 Version)
1. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
2. Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow
3. The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire)
4. O Holy Night
5. Silver Bells
6. Away In A Manger
7. White Christmas
8. What Child Is This
9. I'll Be Home For Christmas
10. Silent Night

(New songs: 1999)
11. Do You Hear What I Hear
12. O Come All Ye Faithful

(New songs: 2007)
13. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
14. Winter Wonderland
15. Baby, It's Cold Outside ft. Dean Martin
16. Jingle Bells


Performance in this rankdown:
49. Silver Bells
46. O Holy Night

---

I know I have raved about this album every other post for the entire rankdown thus far, but tbh it truly deserves it! This is one of those Christmas albums that will continue to be relevant long after Martina herself has faded into obscurity. It is astonishing what a following this album has generated, considering that it doesn't have any original songs on it! And yet radio has rewarded her by making her versions one of the primary go-to versions of nearly all of these classics.

Her vocals are among the best of her career here, and the orchestral arrangements are beautiful and timeless. This is 100% my favorite Christmas album of all time, and tbh I have already listened to it twice in the last 48 hours now that the season is approaching 😂

---

SPOILER: Click to show

{O Holy Tractors}
Juanca -
ClevelandRox -
fireflies -
castleoblivion26 -
bboat11 -
Ginger Spice -
Cody Wants Out... -
toomuchboy -
tim -
taylor -
kansasmeetsmo -
austin -
Kanenrá:ke -
schnetzka -
fearlessarrow -
.indulgecountry -
codyj100 -
George Strait Junkie -
someguy -
Troublemaker -
CoJoFan -

[taylor]

I love Martina's rendition of "O Holy Night," but I must say (and it may be a nitpick but it's a pet peeve of mine lol) I can't stand when artists take the first verse and just do it twice and call it a holy night. I appreciate much more when the third verse is utilized, when I hear the declaration that Christ is the Lord! (which is hauntingly beautiful and just spine-chilling if done correctly, as in Celine's version and Carrie's 2020 edition), when I hear the word Noel! be proclaimed. I don't know if anyone else is with me on this lol but that's just my two cents.

And again that's not a knock on Martina as I love her version, but I do lend more towards Celine's and now the new version of Carrie's. (Faith doesn't say Noel! but I do still go towards hers sometimes)

[Juanca]

50. It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas (33): I recognize hearing this song in the radio in the past couple of years. I didn't know it was her. I didn't notice any vocal issue at all... and didn't mind the classic instrumental. I'll be using this version this Christmas :)
49. Silver Bells (40): I've also heard this version before without knowing who was singing. I'm not a big fan of the song itself, though.
48. Marry Me (41): I liked Train's original version enough, and didn't know this existed This is a nice cover, as their vocals complement well, but didn't find too different from the original to escape my bottom 10.
47. For These Times (42): I don't dislike it, but the melody is just too simple and the instrumental too safe for her catalogue
46. O Holy Night (14): OH!!!! This was a great 'discovery'!! And just like the other 2 Christmas songs, I've heard this version many times in Christmas, and loved it. It's quite a poignant version that has made me emotional more than once. I really like her soft, tender, clear tone, that helps connecting with the lyrics. This and Celine's are now my favorite versions of this song (will check Carrie's soon), but this version now brings strong personal memories that make me consider it one of my favorite Christmas songs ever. So It's GREAT to finally know more of this version :)

By the way, bboat11, I LOVE the info you're sharing. I know very little about Martina, so this is already very useful and interesting to me. Thanks!

[bboat11]

Oct 12, 2020 23:18:55 GMT -5 Juanca said:

50. It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas (33): I recognize hearing this song in the radio in the past couple of years. I didn't know it was her. I didn't notice any vocal issue at all... and didn't mind the classic instrumental. I'll be using this version this Christmas
49. Silver Bells (40): I've also heard this version before without knowing who was singing. I'm not a big fan of the song itself, though.
48. Marry Me (41): I liked Train's original version enough, and didn't know this existed This is a nice cover, as their vocals complement well, but didn't find too different from the original to escape my bottom 10.
47. For These Times (42): I don't dislike it, but the melody is just too simple and the instrumental too safe for her catalogue
46. O Holy Night (14): OH!!!! This was a great 'discovery'!! And just like the other 2 Christmas songs, I've heard this version many times in Christmas, and loved it. It's quite a poignant version that has made me emotional more than once. I really like her soft, tender, clear tone, that helps connecting with the lyrics. This and Celine's are now my favorite versions of this song (will check Carrie's soon), but this version now brings strong personal memories that make me consider it one of my favorite Christmas songs ever. So It's GREAT to finally know more of this version

By the way, bboat11 , I LOVE the info you're sharing. I know very little about Martina, so this is already very useful and interesting to me. Thanks!

It is so cool seeing all your thoughts, as somebody who is experiencing a lot of this material for the first time! (Or at least associating it with Martina for the first time). That 'outsider' perspective will make this rankdown a lot more interesting!

And thank you for liking my info :) I'm trying to make this rankdown as informative and thorough as possible, so people can actually learn something from it!