Light of the Stable is the firstChristmasalbum byEmmylou Harris. It was originally released in 1979 byWarner Bros. Records but has since gone through several intervening releases. The 1992 Warner release was a remastered version of the original with a different album cover. The latest edition was released in 2004 byRhino Records. It contains three newly recorded tracks in addition to remastered versions of the ten original tracks. Its cover came from therecord sleeve of the original45-rpm single version of "Light of the Stable" that was released in 1975. The title song featured harmony vocals fromNeil Young,Dolly Parton andLinda Ronstadt.
Mark Deming ofAllMusic gives the album 4 out of a possible 5 stars and writes, "Emmylou Harris is an artist with the rare sort of voice that communicates an honest and firmly grounded humanity while possessing a crystalline purity that verges on the angelic. In short, she was a singer born to make a great Christmas album, and in 1979 she did just that withLight of the Stable".[1]
Gavin Edwards lists this album at No, 19 in Rolling Stone's 40 Essential Christmas Albums list. He writes, "Harris has always sung like an angel, and on this 1979 album she played the part, a living herald of joyful Nativity tidings. Some of the other golden-throated seraphim providing backing vocals:Linda Ronstadt,Dolly Parton, and, er,Neil Young."[3]
Jim Caligiuri ofThe Austin Chronicle gives this album 4 stars and says, "Emmylou Harris possesses the voice of an angel, so it only makes sense that her versions of Christmas classics are unequaled, as are special guestsWillie Nelson, Neil Young, and Dolly Parton."[2]
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