This is the grand-daddy of them all. G.F. Handel put not only the Christmas story, but the entire narrative of Christ's life, death and resurrection to music. This work will keep you listening from Christmas, right on through until Easter. There are numerous versions out there. The one I like best features Kiri te Kanawa, soprano, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. It's on the London label.

For more than ten years this series of albums has benefited the Special Olympics and thousands of people with mental retardation. Not only does buying this album support a great cause, it brings you some winning Christmas music performed by contemporary artists. This year's album features Cheryl Crow, B.B. King, Stevie Nicks, Tom Petty and more.

If you are just starting out collecting some of the more popular Christmas music, this two disc album is a good place to begin. From Bing Cosby to Nat King Cole, from Eva Cassidy to Charles Brown and the Chipmucks. For more information and a complete listing of the tracks on both albums.

Another classic album is Joan Baez's "Noel," originally published by Vanguard in 1966 and remastered for digital CD and cassette. As Christmas carols are, in essence, folk music, who better to bring these alive in a contemporary folk idiom that the queen of folk, Joan Baez?

Rutter is one of the best contemporary composers of classical music. He is also a choral conductor, arranger, publisher and editor! In 1981 he founded his own choir, the Cambridge Singers, which he conducts and with which he has made many recordings of sacred choral music (including his own works), much of this on his own label, Collegium Records. He lives near Cambridge, England, but frequently conducts other choirs and orchestras around the world. If you are not familiar with Rutter, and want to get to know his music better, this is a good place to begin.