Jim Brickman’s music is the epitome of "mellow," and "lush," and "spiritual," and since his first breakout hit "The Gift" ten years ago, he’s presented a Christmastime tour to spread warmth for the holidays.

This year, Brickman has released a new album of Christmas tunes called "Homecoming," and his holiday tour this year, which is stopping at the Providence Performing Arts Center, is called "The Homecoming Tour." His special guest is Richie McDonald, who sings Brickman’s new holiday hit "Coming Home for Christmas" on the album. They’ll be joined by the Rhode Island Philharmonic Pops, under the baton of Francisco Noya, and they’ll be sure to include another Brickman tune, "Sending You a Little Christmas," which has also become a holiday standard.

Brickman’s Holiday Homecoming Concert will be at the PPAC on Saturday, Dec. 22, at 8 p.m.

Most of Brickman’s recordings are "solo piano," says Brickman, "and starting out in 1994, when I got signed to Windham Hill Records, my primary goal was to write solo piano music that people could enjoy and relate to, take bubble baths to, make out to, all of the things people use this type of music for." Brickman calls this kind of music "lifestyle music" and he aims to write and play "sort of a lifestyle music that isn’t hard to listen to. That is the concept of a lot of my albums and as it evolved over the years, I started doing music that had more vocal themes to it, with more duets featuring a lot of wonderful singers while I was doing the solo piano music... I wrote songs as well that featured artists like Martina McBride, Collin Raye, Herb Albert, Carly Simon, Olivia Newton-John... all those kinds of wonderful artists who have collaborated with me."

Collaboration is important to Brickman, and so is staying close to the vocal song, which is the reason he enjoys touring with Richie McDonald, the former lead singer and songwriter behind Lonestar, one of America’s most successful country bands.

"I’ve always been a huge fan of Richie’s work," says Brickman, who not only invited McDonald to co-write the song "Coming Home for Christmas," but also to kick off his solo career by joining him on the holiday tour this year. "Our audiences share a lot of joyful spirit with us, and it becomes such a positive, rewarding family experience. It’s a return to the simple traditions of the season, with great music and camaraderie."

As the voice of Lonestar, McDonald fronted such hits as "Amazed," "My Front Porch Looking In," and the song that’s become a special favorite of the U.S. military, "I’m Already There." With six gold and platinum selling albums to his credit, along with a dozen top 10 adult contemporary radio hits, Brickman’s best-known compositions include the chart-toppers "Valentine," "The Gift," "Love of My Life" and "Peace." In November 2005, he held the top three spots on Billboard’s New Age chart for his albums "The Disney Songbook," "Grace" and "Greatest Hits." He has established a reputation for his collaborations with many gifted vocal artists, including Martina McBride, Michael W. Smith, Kenny Loggins, Carly Simon, Herb Alpert, Collin Raye, Pam Tillis, Michael Bolton, Donny Osmond and Olivia Newton-John.

Brickman takes his popular live concerts to more than 125 cities each year, and recently he performed on his second sold-out Jim Brickman Valentine Cruise, a unique event that has become an annual favorite. He is also the host of a nationally syndicated radio show, "Your Weekend with Jim Brickman," which aims at bringing listeners both adult contemporary music and discussions of lifestyle issues. In its five-year run, Brickman has interviewed celebrities ranging from Bill Clinton and Tom Cruise, to J.Lo and Jennifer Aniston, talking about relataionships, health, money and entertainment.

His individual recordings, Brickman says, "are a reflection of where you are in your life, they’re snapshots of your life at any given time and what’s going on in your life. It is very hard to say that one is your favorite, but you can definitely say that certain albums have captured the best, the time in your life that you are attempting to reflect by doing the albums. The early albums are the most reflective of a simpler time or moment, because they are the ones without any added pressure from the record company to make it a certain way, or to question any integrity for what’s in the album as far as radio hits or things like that.

"The purest ones are at the beginning of the career because you don’t feel like you’re making them to suit anyone but your own initial vision."

Jim Brickman’s Holiday Homecoming Concert will be at the PPAC on Saturday, Dec. 22, at 8 p.m. For tickets, call (401) 421-2787 or go to www.ppacri.org. This is the first of three concerts in the 2007-08 Pops Phil PPAC Series, which will bring Anne Murray on Feb. 9 and Bernadette Peters on March 15, to sing with the Rhode Island Philharmonic Pops.