"Little Saint Nick," the Beach Boys' 1963 classic, is undoubtedly one of pop music's coolest original Christmas songs. Hanson rocked it more recently, and decades later the original still sounds as hot as the California sun on this special combination of previously released and unvaulted alternate takes and never-released material, including a distinctly different arrangement of "Nick" and a fun, loopy ditty called "Santa's Got an Airplane." While many of the songs here are fodder for completists--and will sound uneven to others--it's hard to resist a record that features real rarities and Christmas material from 1964. Dig master Brian Wilson singing solo on "Blue Christmas" from the '64 Christmas Album and his keenly orchestrated "Winter Symphony" (for a 1977 Christmas disc that was never released, much of which is highlighted throughout this CD) with the warm, brassy instrumental bridge, plus a couple of fun public-service announcements and a Christmas-themed interview with the group's eccentric genius.