Charice in a very special Christmas

I never fail to check out the A Very Special Christmas (AVSC) albums whenever one hits the market. These are collections that truly live up to the word special. For one, proceeds from the series benefit the Special Olympics, put up by the late Eunice Kennedy-Shriver. Over $100-M has been raised since the first AVSC came out. For another, the producer of the albums is Jimmy Iovine, who I must say can make the blandest song fun and edgy.

Because it is for a good cause and has Iovine’s backing, A Very Special Christmas has always attracted the biggest names in popular music. The bigger the stars the more they want to give. And due to this, the series has been a wonderful source of great holiday sounds for more than 20 years. I recall Bruce Springsteen rocking with Merry Christmas Baby in the first AVSC. There were also, Alison Moyet with a goosebumps-inducing Coventry Carol, Madonna with a whispery Santa Baby, John Mellencamp in a rousing Run Rudolf Run and Stevie Nicks with a moving Silent Night.

A Very Special Christmas released its seventh edition this year. Of course, I made sure I checked it out and of course it once more yielded several gems. The line-up this time around is young and the sound is very pop. The intention of the producers must be to get hold of the very lucrative tween market and they have succeeded. Just think, there is no other CD in the stores where you will find top girls Miley Cyrus and Colbie Caillat and even Vanessa Hudgens together. That happens only in this album.

And these girls are not the only ones you will find in AVSC7. I myself was surprised to find her name in the CD. There is also our very own Charice. Yes, the famous Pempengco girl is in A Very Special Christmas 7 where she does a very good job with The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire). Finding her in the company of other big stars is one more sign that she has truly hit the big time in the U.S. of A.

 Other artists who joined in the latest edition of A Very Special Christmas are: Colbie with Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas; the Carter Twins singing Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Miley with Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree; Vanessa and Winter Wonderland; Sean Kingston with The Little Drummer Boy; Kristinia DeBarge with Do You Hear What I Hear?

Mitchel Musso and Jingle Bell Rock; Leighton Meester with Christmas (Baby Please Come Home); Kellie Pickler and Santa Baby; Carrie Underwood with Hark! The Herald Angels Sing; Ashley Tisdale with Last Christmas; and Gloriana with Silent Night.

As in most various artists collections, there are some good, some bad and others that are excellent. Believe you me, I am not being biased when I say that Charice belongs to the latter category. It was quite a thrill finding that her A Christmas Song is one of the best cuts in the album. Wow, you will also say, she is really good. You will feel as proud like you did while watching Efren Peñaflorida receive his Hero of The Year Award from CNN or when seeing Manny Pacquiao floor yet another opponent. Charice also makes us proud to be Pinoys.

2009 was a very good year for Charice. This was when her international career really got off the ground. She toured with David Foster and Friends. She released her version of Note To God on-line where it became a hit. She made her first Hollywood film and with The Chipmunks at that. And would you believe that viewers picked hers over The Black Eyed Peas for the Best Performance honors at The Oprah Winfrey Show.

It was Christmas for Charice the whole year through and I like to think that A Christmas Song for the Special Olympics provides just the right crowning touch.

I cannot sing like Charice, but on this day of days, please allow me to say to you, “And so I’m offering a simple prayer to kids from one to 92, although it’s been said, many times, many ways, Merry Christmas to you.”