John Fahey - The New Possibility: John Fahey's Guitar Soli Christmas Album / Christmas With John Fahey, Vol. II (Reissue) (1968/2006)

John Fahey has made a habit of recording a new album of Christmas music every five or six years, but The New Possibility, which was originally released in 1968, is still his best. On it, Fahey has pulled off the near miraculous feat of taking old holiday chestnuts like "Joy to the World" and "It Came upon a Midnight Clear" and making them sound fresh. When he plays a Travis-picking version of "O Come All Ye Faithful" or he recasts "Silent Night, Holy Night" as bottleneck blues, you get the feeling Fahey is treating the music with respect rather then piety. Also included in this reissue are six tracks from his 1975 release Christmas with John Fahey, Vol. II. The songs feature some nice duets with Rick Ruskin, but the arrangements lack some of the quirkiness that made The New Possibility sound unique. This isn't Bing Crosby singing "White Christmas," but it is a modern holiday classic nonetheless. --Michael Simmons