Some of the biggest names in country music gather to celebrate the holidays in the latest rendition of the “CMA Country Christmas.” Carly Pearce returns to host again this year. Dan and Shay, Steven Curtis Chapman, Old Dominion, Scotty McCreery, Maren Morris, Molly Tuttle and the War and Treaty sing some holiday classics and some new songs they hope will catch on among their fans for the holiday season.

My favorite part of this special is the bluegrass medley with Carly Pearce and Molly Tuttle. I prefer bluegrass music to most contemporary country. That makes me more inclined to like the bluegrass medley of some Christmas favorite. Plus, most of these songs are already well known so that makes them easier to sing along with. I understand the need for new Christmas songs and appreciate the artists’ efforts to introduce new songs, but the others are classics for a reason. All of the classics were great to hear no matter who sang them, but the bluegrass medley was my preferred sub-genre in this year’s special.

My least favorite part of this special would be the two songs by Dan and Shay. I can appreciate that they are very popular among the country music fanbase, but they have never appealed to me. They are talented, there’s no doubt about that. But I’m just not a fan and their new Christmas song really didn’t grab my attention. It was sung well, but I could’ve done without it.

All of the other performances fell somewhere in between. I enjoy Carly Pearce overall, so I really liked her performance of “Here Comes Santa Claus.” Scotty McCreery’s rendition of “Holly Jolly Christmas” was a lot of fun. And it’s nice to see Maren Morris anywhere. She’s not always country, but when she decides to sing country, she’s one of the best.

This is a fun special. If you like country music, whether its more modern and contemporary country or more classic country and bluegrass, this special has something for you. Plus, it’s only 40 minutes long on Disney+, so it doesn’t take too much time to sit back, watch and enjoy.

Rating: 3 stars

What did you think of “CMA Country Christmas?”

Jeremy Brown

Jeremy has been a big Disney fan since he was a kid growing up during the Disney Renaissance. One day he hopes to go to every Disney Park in the world.

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