Christmas album season begins

Do they know it’s not Christmas? Hard to tell.

Though retailers are, more or less, sticking to the idea that the holiday shopping season starts after Halloween, the music industry will roll out big Christmas albums today -- including holiday music from James Taylor, Bette Midler, Brad Paisley, Mary Mary and Lindsay Lohan’s little sis, Ali.

Albums from Sarah McLachlan and Wynonna Judd will soon follow, along with the usual loads of compilations, most notably “Now! That’s What I Call Christmas, Vol. 3.”

The push for these albums will come at a more traditional time, but there’s a bit of a rush to get into the stores, since November is already jam-packed with high-profile releases. With CD sales down about 5% this year, retailers are hoping music fans will pick up holiday music as stocking stuffers when they come into the stores for the hits from Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson, or recent albums -- from Tony Bennett and Ray Charles and the Count Basie Orchestra -- that reach older audiences.