The 5 best Christmas albums to play this season

Need an easy playlist for your Christmas celebrations? Pick up a few of these classic and contemporary Christmas albums and you've got an easy mix of tunes perfect for parties.

1. Bing Crosby's White Christmas
   Start things off with a true classic when you purchase Bing Crosby's White Christmas album (for only $3.99 on Amazon, you can't go wrong). The disc is full of classics like "I'll Be Home for Christmas", "Silent Night", and the title track "White Christmas", you'll have just over a dozen songs to get you in the holiday spirit.
   
   
2. Barenaked Ladies' Barenaked for the Holidays
   Aside from the snooze-worthy version of "Jingle Bells" that kicks off this disc, the Barenaked Ladies' holiday album is a must-have. A mix of both quirky and sentimental Christmas, Hanukkah, and winter songs make up this wonderful collection. The disc also features guest appearances by Sarah McLachlan and Michael Buble. ("God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen/We Three Kings" featuring Sarah McLachlan is especially beautiful.)
   
   
3. Trans-Siberian Orchestra's Christmas Eve and Other Stories
   What did we do before the Trans-Siberian Orchestra came around? Christmas Eve and Other Stories showcases 17 Trans-Siberian Orchestra songs and includes fan-favorite "Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24", (often mistakenly called "Carol of the Bells") which is an instrumental medley of "Carol of the Bells" and "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen".
   
   
4. A Charlie Brown Christmas: The Original Sound Track Recording Of The CBS Television Special
   If you can get your hands on a copy of the original soundtrack from A Charlie Brown Christmas, you are very lucky indeed! The original has the music just as we remember it (without the bells and whistles added to more recent releases). Playing this disc at a Christmas party is sure to invoke nostalgic memories of the season.
   
   
5. The original A Very Special Christmas CD
   Though there are now half a dozen A Very Special Christmas compilations circulating, the original is the best, featuring Christmas songs sung by '80s superstars. From Run D.M.C.'s wonderfully cheesy Christmas in Hollis to U2's rocking Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) and Alison Moyet's hauntingly beautiful The Coventry Carol, the album features contemporary hits and proceeds from the sale of the album benefit Special Olympics.

Tune in to one of these albums for a very special Christmas of your own!