Melissa Etheridge's Christmas album -- released in 2008, reissued in deluxe form the following year -- is faithful to her blues-rock beginnings while retaining a pleasant, relaxed, seasonal vibe. To
Etheridge's credit, she devotes a considerable chunk of the record to originals, mostly slower, meditative pieces, but she kicks up the tempo on "It's Christmas Time," which stands alongside the bluesy shuffle of "Merry Christmas Baby" and "Blue Christmas" as the liveliest stuff here. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine