Josh Groban - Noël

Released in 2007, Noël did something almost no holiday record manages: it became a genuine blockbuster, ending up as the best-selling album in the United States across 2008. Produced by David Foster, it is the record that took Josh Groban from classical-crossover favorite to household name.

The appeal is the voice, a rich, controlled baritone that sounds equally at home in a cathedral or on a Broadway stage, wrapped in sweeping orchestral and choral arrangements. Groban leans toward the sacred end of the Christmas songbook with "Ave Maria," "Panis Angelicus," "O Come All Ye Faithful" and "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear," and sings "Petit Papa Noël" in French. Lighter moments come from "Little Drummer Boy," "I'll Be Home for Christmas" and "The Christmas Song," and guest spots from Faith Hill on "The First Noël" and Brian McKnight on "Thankful" add warmth.

For listeners who like their Christmas music grand and reverent, it remains one of the defining releases of the modern era.

This Reprise edition presents the thirteen-track album across three sides of a double LP, with an etched fourth side.