Lawrence.com

With just a week to go before Christmas, sales of this year's holiday music CDs have been more ho-hum than ho ho ho.

Right now, the two biggest cash-register jinglers are Kenny G's "Wishes for a Holiday Album" (with 287,016 copies sold) and Alan Jackson's "Let It Be Christmas" (at 256,132 stockings stuffed). On the current chart, those CDs stand at No. 29 and 26, respectively. A collection of religious hits, "WOW Christmas," is at a so-so No. 45, with 119,764 copies moved in the past 10 weeks.

Those albums will have to move fast to match the Yuletide triumphs of last year. In 2001, the big movers were Destiny's Child's "8 Days of Christmas" (495,000 copies sold), Barbra Streisand's "Christmas Memory" (842,000) and the year's champ, Mannheim Steamroller's "Christmas Extraordinaire" (1.6 million).

The slump may be a measure of the grinchlike economy.

Of course, there's also the questionable appeal of the projects being offered. Kenny G has released two holiday CDs in the past eight years. Meanwhile, his regular recordings aren't selling like they used to. His recent pop CD, "Paradise," has moved even fewer copies in its 12 weeks out than his Christmas effort has sold in seven (271,378 copies).

Yet neither of those releases has approached his winter wonderland of 6.8 million copies sold by 1994's "Miracles." In '99, Mr. G had another big mover, selling 2.2 million copies of "Faith." That year also saw 3.9 million copies sold for Celine Dion's "These Are Special Times" and 2.4 million for 'N Sync's "Home for Christmas."

The year 2000 was highlighted by Charlotte Church's "Dream a Dream" at 1.1. million copies sold and Christina Aguilera's "My Kind of Christmas" at 755,000. Compared with those sales, 2002's entries sound like a silent night.