The Cheetah Girls - Cheetah Girls Holiday Album (CD)

All Music Guide

Adrienne Bailon, Sabrina Bryan, and Kiely Williams no Raven Symoné this time around kick off the Cheetah Girls' Cheetahlicious Christmas by adding some contemporary swagger to the usual seasonal album chatter. "Hey Cheetahs" one of them says as bells chime in the background. "What's up?" and "Hey girl" the others answer back. "Guess what? Christmas is getting closer," and the girls respond with emphatic calls of "For real" and "Let's do this" "This" is the modern kidfriendly Christmas album. "Five More Days 'Til Christmas" is a nice enough holiday original, but "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" is reimagined over a vague Diwali beat and twittering electronics, and "All I Want for Christmas Is You" offers some breathy, lowkey RB. Other Christmas favorites tumbled through by the trio: a saccharine "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" and "Feliz Navidad." Over the years the greatest holiday chestnuts have withstood hundreds of weird, wild, or misguided remakes, so the Cheetah Girls' wispy, j...unior Mariah Carey versions are pretty harmless. As for the rest, the girls do a nice job with George Michael's "Last Christmas," and "Cheetahlicious Christmas" is the tween catch phrase of the season. "Simple Things" and "No Ordinary Christmas" offer more of the same Christmas tidings and the usual yuletide clichés matched to mildly danceable beats and the occasional jingling bell. It's Cheetahliciousness for real. - Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide Read more Less