It may seem a bit late in the season for caroling, but December is more than a mere Christmas album. Pianist George Winston, the star of Windham Hill's stable of introverted instrumentalists, is a musician of luminous grace, and here he has fashioned a meditation on the wintry months that suggests the simple, regenerative pleasures of a snowy weekend spent deep in the heart of the country. Although he draws on traditional Yuletide material from England, Appalachia, Greece and the Ukraine, Winston's original pieces–the glowing "Thanksgiving," the concluding "Peace"–fit snugly into the concept, as does even that hoariest of elevator anthems, Pachelbel's "Kanon," upon which he works some affectionate variations. Winston disdains the flourishing of fancy chops and concentrates instead on subtleties of space and tone, recalling, in his dedication to simplicity, the work of his mentor, postfolk guitarist John Fahey, and in the fullness and warmth of his touch, the late pianist Vince Guaraldi, another credited influence. But Winston's vision of serenity is his own, and perhaps because he employed no noise reduction circuitry in recording this LP, the sound of his unaccompanied piano emerges with a chimelike clarity, allowing the instrument's rich overtones–particularly on Alfred S. Burt's lilting "Some Children See Him" – to weave an auxiliary harmonic tapestry of their own. December may be two months past, but December is a winner for all seasons. (RS 389)

KURT LODER