Early Christmas for ‘T.V. Family’ Collection

December is still three months away, but it’s unlikely that any new Christmas album will top a just-released Scotti Brothers Records collection in terms of imaginative concept.

“A T.V. Family Christmas” features the original cast members of some of television’s most famous “families” or shows--from the Crosbys to the Cartwrights.

The idea behind the compilation is that real families spend so much time over the years watching various TV families that they’d enjoy celebrating the holiday season by reminiscing with them.

The 12 selections, most of which are appearing on CD for the first time, range from novelty tunes to traditional Christmas carols.

Among the highlights:

* Bing Crosby is joined by sons Gary, Lindsay, Phillip and Dennis on a three-song medley that was originally released in 1950 by Decca Records. The songs aren’t exactly standards--”The Snowman,” “That Christmas Feeling” and “I’d Like to Hitch a Ride With Santa Claus”--but the presentation is charming.

* Danny Thomas, star of “Make Room for Daddy,” is featured on “The First Christmas,” which was released in 1967 by RCA.

* “Bonanza” stars Lorne Greene, Michael Landon and Dan Blocker team up on “Merry Christmas Neighbor,” which was recorded in 1963.

* “The Brady Bunch” family--whose TV names included Mike, Carol, Marcia and Peter--are represented by “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” A 1970 recording.

* Buck Owens, who was part of the “Hee Haw” family for years, sings “Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy,” which was originally released by Capitol in 1970.

* “The Partridge Family”--whose cast included David Cassidy and “L.A. Law’s” Susan Dey--close the album with a rendition of “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” that was recorded in 1971.

Other selections include Howdy Doody and the Fontane Sisters teaming up on “A Howdy Doody Christmas” (1950) and the Monkees’ Peter Tork, Micky Dolenz and David Jones joining on “Christmas Is My Time of Year.”

A Sun Reunion: As the launching pad for such artists as Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis, Sun Records played a major role in the birth of rock in the ‘50s, which is why there have been so many Sun “greatest hits” collections over the years.

But Presley has been missing from most of the collections because RCA Records bought the rights to all of Presley’s Sun recordings when the company bought Presley’s contract in 1955.

However, Elvis is reunited with his former Sun labelmates in RCA’s new “Sun’s Greatest Hits.”

Besides “Mystery Train” and three other tunes by Presley, the 17-song album includes three songs each by Lewis, Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins, as well as one each by Roy Orbison, Bill Justis, Carl Mann and Charlie Rich.