Personnel: Willie Nelson (vocals, guitar); Jody Payne (guitar); Mickey Raphael (harmonica); Booker T. Jones (keyboards); Bee Spears, Chris Etheridge (bass); Paul English, Rex Ludwick (drums).

Recorded in the Enactron Truck, Los Angeles, California.

Willie Nelson has released nearly as many Christmas albums as Elvis, with equally varying results. While his most effective spiritually-oriented recordings are arguably those he made with his pianist sister Bobbie, it's hard to write off PRETTY PAPER. Though this holiday collection finds the Red-Headed Stranger strolling through such Yuletide inevitables as "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" and "Frosty the Snowman," this is no Rankin-Bass Christmas special. Any album that features ex-Flying Burrito Brothers bassist Chris Ethridge, legendary R&B keyboardist Booker T. Jones (who also produced) and longtime Nelson compatriot Mickey Raphael on harp is bound to be a substantive effort. And Willie's trademark jazz/country phrasing (on both vocal and guitar) could put a new spin on "Hava Negilah."