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George Strait's honeyed drawl makes these holiday classics sound warm and cozy. In "King" George's world, "dressed for the holidays" means a heaping of honky-tonk piano and twanging guitars alongside those requisite sleigh bells. There's plenty of love on Classic Christmas, too: "O Christmas Tree" has never sounded so forlorn; "Joy to the World" is a pure twang-filled delight, and "Up on the Housetop" is a fun romp through a country-themed winter wonderland.

Martina McBride gets her Christmas on in this revamped edition of her celebrated 1998 collection of yuletide carols, this time with four newbies: "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing," "Jingle Bells," "Winter Wonderland" and "Baby, It's Cold Outside." The last is a swinging duet with the late, great Dean Martin that was recorded to sound like it was tracked when the legendary boozer was still with us (perfect for busting out the eggnog).

This is an endearingly sweet selection of carols garnished with vintage guitars, lazy pedal steel and other implements of traditional twang. But then "Kung Pao Buckaroo Holiday" shows up like a drunk uncle and starts complaining about how you can't say the word "Christmas" any more because it's "politically incorrect" to do so. Sheesh.

Shelby Lynne is one of modern music's most neglected talents. Here, she gets to the heart of nine holiday favorites and offers up two fine new additions to the Christmas canon. Lynne's approach is natural and laid-back yet she goes directly into the emotional core of each track. "Rudolph" is all innocent fun, while her original "Xmas" plays out like a neo-realist movie full of darker memories ("Holiday cocktails make me forget the gifts that daddy never opened"). The backings mix in country, blues, jazz and soul, making this one to pull out every December.

People still love Elvis. People will always love Elvis. Modern stars like Martina McBride, Carrie Underwood and Amy Grant love the great man so much they've pumped his voice in from beyond the grave, pulling off some digital trickery and get to duet with their hero on a set of Christmas classics. Like the Dean Martin duets set from 2007, this one actually works better than it has any right to. While disgruntled old-timers may wonder why you don't just listen to the unfettered Elvis holiday originals, this will do in a pinch.

If you're expecting a honky-tonk Christmas, Joy to the World is not it. Hill plays this one straight, employing big band flourishes on up-tempo numbers such as "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town," "Winter Wonderland" and "Holly Jolly Christmas." But it works -- those are some of the most fun songs in the collection. On the flip side, slow songs such as "O Come All Ye Faithful" and "O Holy Night" are approached with as much reverence as if Hill was singing them in church, adding the right touch of serenity to this holiday collection.