''The Classic Christmas Album'' is a Christmas compilation album by American pop singer Johnny Mathis that was released on October 7, 2014, by Columbia Records and includes two 1961 recordings that were previously unavailable: "Ol' Kris Kringle" and the original version of the title track from his 1969 Christmas album ''

Give Me Your Love for Christmas ''Give Me Your Love for Christmas'' is the third Christmas album by American pop singer Johnny Mathis and was released by Columbia Records on October 13, 1969. The oldest song selected for this project was the 1934 classic "Santa Claus Is Coming ...

''. Three other songs ("Christmas in the City of the Angels", "Sign of the Dove" and "The Very First Christmas Day") make their debut on compact disc as of this release, and two other non-album singles ("Christmas Is..." and "My Kind of Christmas") can be counted among the rarities here. The collection also includes a selection or two from several of Mathis's Christmas studio albums—"

Sleigh Ride "Sleigh Ride" is a light orchestra standard composed by Leroy Anderson. The composer had formed the original idea for the piece during a heat wave in July 1946, and he finished the work in February 1948. The original recordings were instrument ...

" from '' Merry Christmas'', "

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" is a song written in 1943 by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane and introduced by Judy Garland in the 1944 MGM musical ''Meet Me in St. Louis''. Frank Sinatra later recorded a version with modified lyrics. I ...

" from '' Sounds of Christmas'', "Calypso Noel" from ''

'', "

The Christmas Waltz "The Christmas Waltz" is a Christmas song written by Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne for Frank Sinatra, who recorded it in 1954 as the B-side of a new recording of " White Christmas", in 1957 for his album ''A Jolly Christmas from Frank Sinatra'', and i ...

" and " It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" from ''

Christmas Eve with Johnny Mathis ''Christmas Eve with Johnny Mathis'' is the fourth Christmas album by American pop singer Johnny Mathis that was released on September 23, 1986, by Columbia Records. This was Mathis's fourth holiday-themed gramophone record, LP and focused exclus ...

'', and " Home for the Holidays" from '' Sending You a Little Christmas''—as well as his duet with Bette Midler from her 2006 holiday album ''

Cool Yule ''Cool Yule'' is a holiday album by Bette Midler released on October 10, 2006, through Columbia Records. Midler's first seasonal release, the album features many standard Christmas tunes as well as a reworking edition of her Grammy-winning hit ...

'', which was a medley of "

Winter Wonderland "Winter Wonderland" is a song written in 1934 by Felix Bernard and lyricist Richard Bernhard Smith. Due to its seasonal theme, it is often regarded as a Christmas song in the Northern Hemisphere. Since its original recording by Richard Himbe ...

" and "

Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!", also known as simply "Let It Snow", is a song written by lyricist Sammy Cahn and composer Jule Styne in July 1945 in Hollywood, California, during a heat wave as Cahn and Styne imagined cooler conditions ...

Critical reception

The Second Disc's Joe Marchese was impressed by the rarities on this collection ("Didier C. Deutsch and Jeff James have gone the extra mile") and also the sound quality ("Maria Triana has beautifully remastered all tracks."). George W. Harris of Jazz Weekly wrote in his review of the disc that Mathis is "one of the few vocalists that owns '

', and December 25th is better off for it."

Track listing

#" It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" (

Meredith Willson Robert Reiniger Meredith Willson (May 18, 1902 – June 15, 1984) was an American flutist, composer, conductor, musical arranger, bandleader, playwright, and writer. He is perhaps best known for writing the book, music, and lyrics for the 19 ...

) – 2:14 #* Jeremy Lubbock – arranger, conductor #* Denny Diante – producer # "Ol' Kris Kringle" performed with

Percy Faith Percy Faith (April 7, 1908 – February 9, 1976) was a Canadian-American bandleader, orchestrator, composer and conductor, known for his lush arrangements of pop and Christmas standards. He is often credited with popularizing the "easy listeni ...

& His Orchestra ( Hugh Adamson,

Jimmy McHugh James Francis McHugh (July 10, 1894 – May 23, 1969) was an American composer. One of the most prolific songwriters from the 1920s to the 1950s, he is credited with over 500 songs. His songs were recorded by many artists, including Chet Baker, Ju ...

) – 2:24 #* Lou Halmy – arranger #*

Irving Townsend Irving Townsend (November 27, 1920 – December 17, 1981) was an American record producer and author. He is most famous for having produced the Miles Davis album ''Kind of Blue'', which is the best-selling jazz album of all time according to ...

– producer # "The Very First Christmas Day" (Clark Gassman, Molly-Ann Leikin) – 3:07 #*

Gene Page Eugene Edgar Page Jr. (September 13, 1939 – August 24, 1998) was an American conductor, composer, arranger and record producer, most active from the mid-1960s through the mid-1980s. His sound can be heard in the arrangements he did for Jeffer ...

– arranger, conductor #* Jack Gold – producer # "Calypso Noel" (Gordon Krunnfusz) – 2:14 #*

Ernie Freeman Ernest Aaron Freeman (August 16, 1922 – May 16, 1981) was an American pianist, organist, bandleader, and arranger. He was responsible for arranging many successful rhythm and blues and pop records from the 1950s to the 1970s. Birth and fam ...

– arranger, conductor(1969) ''Give Me Your Love for Christmas'' by Johnny Mathis lbum jacket New York: Columbia Records CS 9923. #* Jack Gold – producer # "My Kind of Christmas" performed with

& His Orchestra (

Jerry Livingston Jerry Livingston (born Jerry Levinson; March 25, 1909 – July 1, 1987) was an American songwriter and dance orchestra pianist. Life and career Born in Denver, Colorado, Livingston studied music at the University of Arizona. While there he com ...

, Paul Francis Webster) – 3:02 #* Irving Townsend – producer # Medley performed with Bette Midler – 2:47
a. "

" (

Felix Bernard Felix William Bernard (April 28, 1897 – October 20, 1944) was an American conductor, pianist and a composer of popular music. His writing credits include the popular songs "Winter Wonderland" (with lyricist Richard B. Smith) and "Dardanella". B ...

Richard Bernhard Smith Richard Bernhard Smith (September 29, 1901 – September 29, 1935) was an American composer who wrote the lyrics to the popular Christmas song "Winter Wonderland", which was composed by Felix Bernard. Smith was born on September 29, 1901, ...

)
b. "

" (

Sammy Cahn Samuel Cohen (June 18, 1913 – January 15, 1993), known professionally as Sammy Cahn, was an American lyricist, songwriter, and musician. He is best known for his romantic lyrics to films and Broadway songs, as well as stand-alone songs premi ...

, Jule Styne) #*Bette Sussman – arranger #* Patrick Williams – arranger #* Robbie Buchanan – producer # "Give Me Your Love for Christmas" performed with

& His Orchestra (Jack Gold, Phyllis Stohn) – 2:55 #* Irving Townsend – producer # "

" performed with

& His Orchestra (

Leroy Anderson Leroy Anderson ( ) (June 29, 1908 – May 18, 1975) was an American composer of short, light concert pieces, many of which were introduced by the Boston Pops Orchestra under the direction of Arthur Fiedler. John Williams described him as ...

Mitchell Parish Mitchell Parish (born Michael Hyman Pashelinsky; July 10, 1900 – March 31, 1993) was an American lyricist, notably as a writer of songs for stage and screen. Biography Parish was born to a Jewish family in Lithuania, Russian Empire in July 190 ...

) – 3:01 #*

Mitch Miller Mitchell William Miller (July 4, 1911 – July 31, 2010) was an American choral conductor, record producer, record-industry executive, and professional oboist. He was involved in almost all aspects of the industry, particularly as a conductor ...

– producer # "

" (

, Jule Styne) – 2:36 #*

Ray Ellis Ray Ellis (July 28, 1923 – October 27, 2008) was an American record producer, arranger, conductor, and saxophonist. He was responsible for the orchestration in Billie Holiday's '' Lady in Satin'' (1958). Biography Raymond Spencer Ellis ...

– arranger, conductor #* Denny Diante – producer # "Christmas in the City of the Angels" (Suzy Elman; Arnold Goland; Jack Gold) – 2:50 #*

– arranger, conductor #* Jack Gold – producer # "Christmas Is..." (

, Spence Maxwell) – 3:06 #* Ernie Freeman – arranger, conductor(1970) "Christmas Is.../Sign of the Dove" by Johnny Mathis -inch single New York: Columbia Records 4-45513. #* Jack Gold – producer # "

" (

Ralph Blane Ralph Blane (July 26, 1914 – November 13, 1995) was an American composer, lyricist, and performer. Life and career Blane was born Ralph Uriah Hunsecker in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. He attended Tulsa Central High School. He studied singing with ...

Hugh Martin Hugh Martin (August 11, 1914 – March 11, 2011) was an American musical theater and film composer, arranger, vocal coach, and playwright. He was best known for his score for the 1944 MGM musical ''Meet Me in St. Louis'', in which Judy Garland ...

) – 3:33 #* Glenn Osser – arranger #* Jack Feierman – conductor #*

Don Costa Dominick P. "Don" Costa (June 10, 1925 – January 19, 1983) was an American conductor and record producer. He discovered singer Paul Anka and worked on several hit albums by Frank Sinatra, including ''Sinatra and Strings'' and '' My Way''. ...

– producer # " Home for the Holidays" performed with

The Jordanaires The Jordanaires were an American vocal quartet that formed as a gospel group in 1948. Over the years, they recorded both sacred and secular music for recording companies such as Capitol Records, RCA Victor, Columbia Records, Decca Records, Vocal ...

( Robert Allen,

Al Stillman Al Stillman ''(né'' Albert Irving Silverman; 26 June 1901 Manhattan, New York – 17 February 1979 Manhattan, New York) was an American lyricist. Biography Stillman was born to Jewish parents Herman Silverman and Gertrude Rubin ''(maiden).'' He a ...

) – 3:07 #*

Fred Mollin Fred Mollin is an American and Canadian record producer, musician, film and TV composer, music director, music supervisor, and songwriter. He has produced records for Jimmy Webb, Johnny Mathis, Billy Ray Cyrus, Lamont Dozier and America, and ha ...

– producer # "Sign of the Dove" (Bradford Craig) – 2:49 #* Ernie Freeman – arranger, conductor #* Jack Gold – producer

Recording dates

*June 18, 1958 – "Sleigh Ride" *September 11, 1961 – "Give Me Your Love for Christmas", "My Kind of Christmas", "Ol' Kris Kringle" *July 17, 1963 – "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" *September 23, 1969 – "Calypso Noel" *October 30, 1970 – "Christmas Is...", "Sign of the Dove" *June 5, 1979 – "Christmas in the City of the Angels", "The Very First Christmas Day" *July 1986 – "The Christmas Waltz", "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" *2006 – "Winter Wonderland/Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" *2013 – "Home for the Holidays"

Personnel

* Johnny Mathis – vocals Compilation *Didier C. Deutsch – producer *Jeffrey James – producer *Maria Triana – mastering *Mike Kull – tape research *Mike Cimicata – project direction *Mike Curry/Skouras Design – art direction *LFI/Photoshot – photography *Mastered at Battery Studios,

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Classic Christmas Album 2014 Christmas albums Christmas albums by American artists Pop Christmas albums Johnny Mathis compilation albums Columbia Records Christmas albums 2014 compilation albums Columbia Records compilation albums Mathis, Johnny