From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

James Taylor at Christmas
Studio album by
ReleasedOctober 10, 2006
Recorded2004, 2006
Genre Christmas
Length45:49
Label Columbia
Producer Dave Grusin, Russ Titelman, James Taylor, Charlie Paakkari
James Taylor chronology
James Taylor: A Christmas Album
(2004)
James Taylor at Christmas
(2006)
One Man Band
(2007)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic [1]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music [2]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide [3]

James Taylor at Christmas is the 17th studio and second Christmas album by singer-songwriter James Taylor, released by Columbia Records in 2006. It was his last release for Columbia since signing with the label in 1977.

The album is essentially a reissue (with a new title and slightly altered track listing) of James Taylor: A Christmas Album, a limited edition title distributed by Hallmark Cards in 2004. "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," originally issued on Taylor's October Road in 2002, and "River" were not included on the original Hallmark release. Additionally, the original album featured a version of " Deck the Halls" which is not on the standard Columbia CD. (The Barnes & Noble chain, however, issued a version of the new title with "Deck the Halls" included as a bonus track.)

The album was reissued on the UMe label in 2012, with the addition of two tracks. One of them, "Mon Beau Sapin" (a French translation of " O Christmas Tree"), is a new recording and is only available on this album. The other track new to the collection is a version of George Harrison's " Here Comes the Sun" by Taylor and cellist Yo-Yo Ma, which originally appeared on Ma's 2008 holiday album Songs of Joy & Peace.

The album was nominated for Best Traditional Pop Album at the 50th Grammy Awards.[ citation needed]

Track listing (2006 edition)

  1. " Winter Wonderland" featuring Chris Botti ( Felix Bernard, Richard B. Smith) – 3:34
  2. " Go Tell It on the Mountain" (Traditional) – 3:42
  3. " Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" ( J. Fred Coots, Haven Gillespie) – 2:57
  4. " Jingle Bells" (Traditional) – 3:52
  5. " Baby, It's Cold Outside" featuring Natalie Cole ( Frank Loesser) – 4:17
  6. " River" ( Joni Mitchell) – 3:33
  7. " Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" ( Hugh Martin, Ralph Blane) – 3:24
  8. " The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)" featuring Toots Thielemans ( Mel Tormé, Robert Wells) – 3:52
  9. "Some Children See Him" (Wihla Hutson, Alfred Burt) – 4:37
  10. "Who Comes This Night" ( Dave Grusin, Sally Stevens) – 4:11
  11. " In the Bleak Midwinter" (Traditional) – 4:12
  12. " Auld Lang Syne" (Traditional) – 3:38

Track listing (2012 edition)

  1. " Winter Wonderland" featuring Chris Botti ( Felix Bernard, Richard B. Smith) - 3:34
  2. " Go Tell It on the Mountain" (Traditional) - 3:42
  3. " Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" ( J. Fred Coots, Haven Gillespie) - 2:57
  4. " Jingle Bells" (Traditional) - 3:52
  5. " Baby, It's Cold Outside" featuring Natalie Cole ( Frank Loesser) - 4:17
  6. " River" ( Joni Mitchell) - 3:33
  7. " Here Comes the Sun" featuring Yo-Yo Ma ( George Harrison) - 2:50
  8. " Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" ( Hugh Martin, Ralph Blane) - 3:24
  9. "Some Children See Him" (Wihla Hutson, Alfred Burt) - 4:37
  10. "Mon Beau Sapin" (Traditional) - 3:08
  11. " The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)" featuring Toots Thielemans ( Mel Tormé, Robert Wells) - 3:52
  12. "Who Comes This Night" ( Dave Grusin, Sally Stevens) - 4:11
  13. " In the Bleak Midwinter" (Traditional) - 4:12
  14. " Auld Lang Syne" (Traditional) - 3:38

Personnel

Production

  • Dave Grusin – producer (1–5, 9–14)
  • Charlie Paakkari – producer (6), assistant engineer
  • James Taylor – producer (6)
  • Dave O'Donnell – producer, recording and mixing (7, 10)
  • Russ Titelman – producer (8)
  • Don Murray – recording and mixing (1–6, 9, 11–14)
  • Doug Sax – mastering at The Mastering Lab, Hollywood, California
  • Sangwook Nam – mastering at The Mastering Lab, Hollywood, California
  • Christopher Austopchuk – art direction, design
  • David Bett – art direction, design
  • Timothy White – photography

Charts

References

  1. ^ Monger, James Christopher. "James Taylor at Christmas > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved January 23, 2011.
  2. ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN  978-0195313734.
  3. ^ "James Taylor: Album Guide". rollingstone.com. Archived from the original on January 5, 2013. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
  4. ^ "James Taylor Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  5. ^ "James Taylor Chart History (Holiday Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  6. ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2007". Billboard. Retrieved June 28, 2021.