Christmas[2] (also known as Mannheim Steamroller Christmas[3]) is the first Christmas album and sixth studio album released by American musical group Mannheim Steamroller. It was the band's first album to chart on the Billboard 200 album chart, peaking at No. 50.
| Christmas | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 15, 1984 | |||
| Recorded | 1984 | |||
| Genre | Christmas music, synthpop, new wave | |||
| Length | 33:01 | |||
| Label | American Gramaphone | |||
| Producer | Chip Davis | |||
| Mannheim Steamroller chronology | ||||
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| Mannheim Steamroller Christmas albums chronology | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
On June 21, 2004, the album was certified 6× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for shipment of six million copies in the United States since its 1984 release, making it one of the best-selling Christmas/holiday albums in the U.S.[4]
Seven of the album's 11 tracks were included in the group's 2004 compilation Christmas Celebration.
It is Manheim Steamroller's second best selling Christmas album (next to A Fresh Aire Christmas),[5] and as of November 2014, it was the seventh best-selling Christmas/holiday album in the U.S. during the Nielsen SoundScan era of music sales tracking (March 1991 – present), having sold a total of 3,500,000 copies during that period according to SoundScan.[6]
2019 marked the 35th anniversary of the album, which was celebrated with special-edition vinyl and compact disc releases.[3]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Deck the Halls" | Traditional (Welsh ayre) | 3:43 |
| 2. | "We Three Kings" | John Hopkins | 3:45 |
| 3. | "Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella" | Traditional (17th century French) | 2:32 |
| 4. | "Coventry Carol" | Traditional (16th century English) | 2:38 |
| 5. | "Good King Wenceslas" | Traditional (English carol) | 3:29 |
| 6. | "Wassail, Wassail" | Traditional (Ancient English carol) | 2:20 |
| 7. | "Carol of the Birds" | Traditional (Bas-Quercy) | 2:03 |
| 8. | "I Saw Three Ships" | Traditional (15th century legend) | 1:28 |
| 9. | "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen" (Renaissance version[a]) | Traditional (English carol) | 1:38 |
| 10. | "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen" (rock version) | Traditional (English carol) | 4:19 |
| 11. | "Stille Nacht" | Franz Gruber | 5:26 |
- ^ Tracks 6–9 comprise the "Christmas Sweet."
Personnel
edit- Louis F. "Chip" Davis Jr. - drums, percussion (including camel bells), recorder, bells, dulcimer, crumhorn, vocals, pencil, dry ice
- Eric Hansen - bass, lute
- Jackson Berkey - Baldwin S-10 piano, Davis harpsichord, clavichord, toy piano, Prophet 5 synthesizer, Fender Rhodes, camel bells, vocals
- Ron Cooley - 6 and 12-string guitars
- Willis Ann Ross - flute
- David "High D" Kappy - French horn
- Mary Walter - harp
- String section includes Steve Shipps (concertmaster), Richard Lohmann, Richard Altenbach, Grace Granata, Deborah Fuller, Scott Shoemaker (violins), Michelle Brill, Michael Strauss, Roxanne Adams (violas), David Low, Kim Rockshaw, Greg Clinton (cellos), Wayne Anderson, and Bill Ritchie (double basses)
- Ron Dabbs - camel bells, sound effects engineer
- Louis Davis Sr. - keyboard technician
References
edit- ^ Allmusic review
- ^ Christmas by Mannheim Steamroller on iTunes
- ^ a b "Official Site of Mannheim Steamroller". Archived from the original on November 7, 2022. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
Chip has remastered Mannheim Steamroller Christmas — his very first holiday album — in a special green vinyl version!
- ^ "RIAA Searchable Database". Recording Industry Association of America. Archived from the original on April 15, 2013. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
- ^ "Mannheim Steamroller Albums ranked by sales". Best Selling Albums.org.
- ^ "The Gifts That Keep on Giving: Biggest Radio and Album Hits of the Holidays". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. December 1, 2014. Retrieved December 2, 2014.