What Christmas music hits the spot when you've felt sluggish and under the weather for four days? My answer: the "Winter Dreams" CD by R. Carlos Nakai & William Eaton. Released in 1990, the blend of flute, lyre, and guitars transports the listener to the desert southwest for expansive, atmospheric renditions of "I Saw Three Ships," "The First Noel," "Silent Night," and other standards.
While hearing me play it in the '90s, my father said that it sounds like "Dances With Wolves." It does. Even my cat, Collette, was transfixed by the peaceful instrumentation earlier tonight. Her kneading of me was gentler, and she sat still, with her ears perked up, for an unusually long time.
