Donny Osmond

Christmas at Home
$6.99
This album has been a Christmas cornerstone for me since its release seven years ago. It is one of the most unique collections of Christmas songs I've ever heard, ranging from familiar classics like "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year" to relatively unknown but still amazing songs like "After December Slips Away." Included in the track list is a captivating Calypso version of "Deck the Halls," and I don't think anyone has ever done "Grown-Up Christmas List" more justice than Donny. It's only the first week of November, but I've been blasting this CD in my car for the past few weeks since it arrived in the mail. Even though the snow hasn't started falling yet, hearing these fantastic songs again puts the smell and feel of the Christmas season in the air.

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
$19.98
This is one of the classic performances. A little over the top with costumes but the music and singing is tops. An unusual set up for the venue but it works.

Life is Just What You Make It: My Story So Far
$15.95
I discovered Donny as a 9 year old in 1972, the first time I heard Puppy Love on the car radio (I thought the DJ said Johnny Osmond; my dad had to correct me). From that very first listen, I was hooked. Even now to this day, 37 years later, it's still one of my top 2 favorite songs. So to read him say how much he grew to hate that songs makes me sad, because it brought me such happiness over the years. I became a huge fan, buying Donny's and the Osmond Brothers' albums, posters, books, joining their fan club, and generally buying every bit of Osmond merchandise I could get my hands on. Reading this book brought me back to those golden years when they were always on the radio, and I was constantly teased for my Donny obsession. There are only two things I don't like about the book: his almost fanatic devotion to the Mormon church (and as an ex-Mormon, I know what I'm talking about), and his belief that some of the Osmonds' music could have been considered "heavy metal". I don't know if he actually believes it, or if he's just indulging in a bit of revisionist history to try and make the Osmonds' music look more serious than the bubblegum pop it actually was, but it made me laugh. The part about the French biker gang showing up to the Osmonds' concert because they were hoping for a heavy metal show was beyond belief. Does Donny actually believe that's what they were there for? I think it's more likely that they showed up to cause a bit of damage and mayhem, which is what happened.
At any rate, I love this book and I've read it many times in the 10 years I've owned it (hardcover, not paperback). I wish he'd write a follow-up to let us know what his life has been like in the interim, including the death of his beloved parents.

Donny & Marie
$37.98
2009 release from the dynamic duo, their first album together in over three decades. The showbiz siblings collaborate with a showstopping album of mega hits that includes a moving rendition of 'I Swear' and the fantastic, catchy lead single 'Vegas Love'. 18 tracks total. Decca.