Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album

Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album
The word "Glee" is in large lowercase red print and centered on a green background with a Christmas bauble. Beneath it are the words "The Christmas Album" and above are "The Music", both in lowercase white font.
Soundtrack album by Glee Cast
Released November 9, 2010 (2010-11-09)
Recorded 2009–10
Genre Christmas music
Length 38:42
Label Columbia / 20th Century Fox TV
Producer Dante Di Loreto (exec.), Brad Falchuk (exec.), Adam Anders, Peer Åström, Ryan Murphy
Glee Cast chronology
Glee: The Music, The Rocky Horror Glee Show
(2010)Glee: The Music, The Rocky Horror Glee Show2010		 Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album
(2010)		 Glee: The Music, Volume 4
(2010)Glee: The Music, Volume 42010

Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album is the fourth soundtrack album by the cast of the American musical television series Glee. The album was released on November 9, 2010 and accompanies the season two Christmas episode "A Very Glee Christmas", aired December 7, 2010. Dante Di Loreto and Brad Falchuk serve as the album's executive producers. Critical reception has been mixed, with the majority of professional reviews praising the cover version of "Baby, It's Cold Outside" performed by Chris Colfer and guest star Darren Criss, as well as the vocals of Lea Michele and Amber Riley, but questioning the arrangements of some other tracks. The album debuted at the top position of the Billboard Soundtracks chart, as well as peaking at number three on the Billboard 200.

Background

Singer-songwriter k.d. lang (pictured) features on "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch".

Six of the songs on the album are heard in "A Very Glee Christmas", a Christmas episode, which aired on December 7, 2010 on Fox as the last episode for the year.[1][2][3] The tracks are "We Need a Little Christmas", "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch", "Merry Christmas Darling", "Baby, It's Cold Outside", "Last Christmas", and "The Most Wonderful Day of the Year".[4] The cover of Wham!'s "Last Christmas" was previously released on November 24, 2009 as a charity record exclusively to the iTunes Store; part of the proceeds went to the Grammy Foundation to fund school education programs.[5][6] It was never used in any season one episode, and marked the first appearance of the song on the Billboard Hot 100, at number sixty-three.[7][8] It also charted on the Australian Singles Chart at number sixty, on the Canadian Hot 100 at number forty-six, and on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart at number twenty-seven.[9][10] On Billboard's Holiday Songs chart, which measures sales and airplay, "Last Christmas" charted at number twenty for the 2009 holiday season.[11]

The album's official track listing was revealed in a press release on October 26, 2010.[3] Canadian singer-songwriter k.d. lang makes a featured appearance with Matthew Morrison on the track "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch", covered with the original lyrics—unlike the television version which changed the opening lyric from "Mr. Grinch" to "Sue the Grinch".[12] Additionally, guest star Darren Criss makes a vocal appearance on "Baby, It's Cold Outside".[13] A Glee Christmas card featuring the cast in Christmas sweaters was released to accompany the album.[14]

The song "O Holy Night", although not featured in the season 2 Christmas episode, was later sung on screen by Lea Michele in the season 4 episode "Swan Song".

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
About.com[15]
Allmusic[16]
The Detroit News(B)[17]
Entertainment Weekly(B+)[18]
Ottawa Citizen(favorable)[19]
Philadelphia Daily News(C+)[20]
Vanity Fair(mixed)[21]

Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album was met with mixed criticism upon its release. Writers for The Detroit News praised the "underappreciated" opening track "We Need a Little Christmas" and gave a B rating for what they opined as Glee's best album hitherto.[17] Andrew Leahey of allmusic gave the album three out of five stars, unsurprised by the songs being "performed in Glee's familiar Broadway-pop style". He enjoyed "Baby, It's Cold Outside" and its unorthodoxy of being duetted between two males—Chris Colfer and guest star Darren Criss—as "a refreshingly risqué move for Fox TV".[16] Tanner Stransky of Entertainment Weekly noted it as a standout track on the album, as did About.com's Bill Lamb, calling it "charm-filled", and E! Online's Jennifer Arrow, using the word "marvelous".[15][18][22] Stransky gave The Christmas Album a B+ rating, calling it "plenty joyful, in that silly, Kidz Bop-for-adults way."[18] He also called Amber Riley's rendition of "Angels We Have Heard on High" "soaring" while Arrow deemed it "amazing".[18][22] Lea Michele's vocals on "O Holy Night" were complimented by both Arrow and Leahey; the latter compared them to those of Kristin Chenoweth.[16][22] Bruce Ward writing for the Ottawa Citizen, however, didn't like the track, and thought the song was uncomfortably slow.[19]

Lamb gave the album a four-star rating, calling it "an enduring collection" of "solid holiday music", and was delighted by the animated "Deck the Rooftop", a blend of "Deck the Halls" and "Up on the House Top".[15] Ward agreed, but Leahey questioned the arrangement of this "urban mash-up", likening it to a song that would be performed by a Disney actress.[16][19] Vanity Fair's Brett Berk decided the record was "not able to be categorized as good or bad", leaving it open for the listener to decide on the "twelve candy cane-sweetened tracks".[21] Writing for the New York Post, Jarett Wieselman thought the album overall sounded like the soundtrack of an advertisement for Gap, but praised the vocal work of Colfer, Michele, and Riley.[23] Jonathan Takiff of the Philadelphia Daily News felt the tracks were too artificial and was disappointed the cast didn't cover more songs outside the realm of pop music.[20] Kyle Buchanan of New York lamented the fact that Jane Lynch was not the one singing "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch", calling it a "missed opportunity", while Wieselman was confused at Lang's appearance on the track, wondering if previous guest star Olivia Newton-John would have been a better choice.[23][24]

Chart performance

The album debuted at number eight on the Billboard 200 the week of November 24, 2010, with 161,198 copies sold, and the cover of "O Holy Night" debuted that week at number one on the Holiday Digital Songs chart.[25][26][27] Also that week, the album saw a debut at number three on the Canadian Albums Chart, selling 16,000 copies.[28] The following week, the album dropped two spots in the US, with sales of 108,000, but held the same spot in Canada with 18,000 copies.[29][30] On December 15, 2010, the album climbed to number one in Canada, with sales totalling 81,000;[31] it also reached its highest point on the US charts at number three, selling 193,000 copies that week. The album was certified platinum with over one million in sales, Glee's second-best selling album behind their debut.[32][33][34] It has sold 1,080,000 copies in the US as August 2013.[35]

Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album peaked in both Australia and Ireland at number thirteen, in New Zealand at number thirty-two, and in the Netherlands at number fifty.[36][37] Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album debuted on the UK Albums Chart at number thirty-seven the week of December 11, 2010.[38]

The song from the album "We Need a Little Christmas" debuted on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart the week of December 6, 2010 at number twenty.[39] "Deck the Rooftop" debuted on the same chart a week later, at number twenty-nine, as did "The Most Wonderful Day of the Year" the week after that, at number twenty-eight.[40][41]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Original (&/or Earliest recording) artistLength
1."We Need a Little Christmas"Jerry HermanAngela Lansbury in the musical Mame2:45
2."Deck the Rooftop"traditional/Benjamin Hanby[15][42] 2:32
3."Merry Christmas Darling"Frank Pooler and Richard CarpenterThe Carpenters3:04
4."Baby, It's Cold Outside"Frank LoesserFrank Loesser and Lynn Garland[43]2:48
5."The Most Wonderful Day of the Year"Johnny MarksVideocraft Chorus for the animated television special Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer2:02
6."Last Christmas"George MichaelWham!3:37
7."God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"traditionalVictor Mixed Chorus & Trinity Choir with Victor Orchestra[44]3:11
8."O Christmas Tree"traditionalNebe Quartett[45]3:02
9."Jingle Bells"James PierpontEdison Male Quartet2:56
10."You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" (featuring k.d. lang)Albert Hague and Ted GeiselThurl Ravenscroft for the animated television special How the Grinch Stole Christmas!3:20
11."Angels We Have Heard on High"traditionalPaul Mickelson Orchestra & Choir[46]4:24
12."O Holy Night"traditionalReginald Fessenden[47]5:01

Notes

Personnel

Unless otherwise indicated, Information is taken from Liner Notes[50]

Charts and certifications

Preceded by
The Gift by Susan Boyle		 Canadian Albums Chart number-one album
December 25, 2010 		Succeeded by
The Gift by Susan Boyle

Release history

Country Release date Format(s)
Germany[58] November 9, 2010 CD
Australia[59] November 16, 2010 Digital download
Canada[60]
Mexico[61]
Ireland[62]
Netherlands[63]
Switzerland[64]
United States[65][66] CD, digital download
Australia[67] November 19, 2010 CD
Ireland[68] Digital download
Taiwan[69] CD
Denmark[70] November 22, 2010 Digital download
Finland[71]
New Zealand[72]
Norway[73]
Portugal[74]
Spain[75] November 23, 2010
United Kingdom[76][77] November 29, 2010 CD, digital download
Poland[78] December 6, 2010 CD

References

  1. ↑ "The glee club needs a little Christmas on an all-new "Glee"" (Press release). Fox Broadcasting Company. 2010. Retrieved November 23, 2010.
  2. ↑ Keck, William (November 9, 2010). "Glee Exclusive: On the Set of TV's Hottest Show". TV Guide. Retrieved November 18, 2010.
  3. 1 2 "Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album − Available November 16" (Press release). PR Newswire. October 26, 2010. Retrieved October 27, 2010.
  4. ↑ Cheung, Nadine (December 3, 2010). "'Glee' 'A Very Glee Christmas' Songs -- Season 2, Episode 10". AOL Radio Blog. AOL. Retrieved December 3, 2010.
  5. ↑ "Glee Gets In The Holiday Spirit With Festive New Single, Available Today Exclusively On iTunes" (Press release). PR Newswire. November 24, 2010. Retrieved November 21, 2010.
  6. ↑ Toor, Amar (October 27, 2010). "'Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album' -- 2010 New Album Preview". AOL Radio Blog. AOL. Retrieved November 21, 2010.
  7. ↑ Kaufman, Gil (October 27, 2010). "'Glee' Christmas Album Due November 16". MTV News. Retrieved November 21, 2010.
  8. ↑ Trust, Gary (December 10, 2009). "Chart Beat Thursday: "Glee" Cast, Colbie Caillat, Sade". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 2, 2010.
  9. ↑ "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 14 December 2009" (pdf) (1033). Pandora Archive. Retrieved January 11, 2010.
  10. ↑ "Last Christmas". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved November 21, 2010.
  11. ↑ Trust, Gary (December 1, 2010). "Mariah Carey's 'All I Want' Crowns Billboard's Holiday Songs Chart". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
  12. ↑ Lipshutz, Jason (October 26, 2010). "'Glee' to Ring in Holidays with 'Christmas Album'". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved October 27, 2010.
  13. ↑ Ausiello, Michael (October 25, 2010). "Exclusive: 'Glee' Christmas album out Nov. 16". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. Retrieved October 27, 2010.
  14. ↑ Arrow, Jennifer (November 10, 2010). "Holy Bad Sweaters! Check Out Our First Look at the Glee Christmas Card". E! Online. E!. Retrieved November 20, 2010.
  15. 1 2 3 4 Lamb, Bill. "Glee, the Christmas Album". About.com. The New York Times Company. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  16. 1 2 3 4 Leahey, Andrew. "Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album: Review". allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  17. 1 2 Whitall, Susan; Graham, Adam; Johnson, Lawrence B. (November 30, 2010). "Gift guide: Ring in the season with new and traditional holiday music". The Detroit News. MediaNews Group. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
  18. 1 2 3 4 Stransky, Tanner (November 10, 2010). "Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  19. 1 2 3 Ward, Bruce (December 1, 2010). "Holiday albums". Ottawa Citizen. Postmedia Network. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
  20. 1 2 Takiff, Jonathan (November 30, 2010). "Here they come a-caroling: New CDs to put you in the holiday spirit". Philadelphia Daily News. Philadelphia Media Holdings. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
  21. 1 2 Berk, Brett (November 16, 2010). "Album Review: The Glee Christmas Album". Vanity Fair. Condé Nast Publications. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  22. 1 2 3 Arrow, Jennifer (October 29, 2010). "What Glee's Fantastic Christmas Album Reveals About Your Favorite Showmances". E! Online. E!. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  23. 1 2 Wieselman, Jarett (November 5, 2010). "Preview a very 'Glee' Christmas". New York Post. Paul Carlucci. Retrieved November 19, 2010.
  24. ↑ Buchanan, Kyle. "Listen to Songs From the Glee Christmas Album". New York. New York Media Holdings. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  25. 1 2 3 Caulfield, Keith (November 24, 2010). "Susan Boyle's 'Gift' Tops Rihanna, Kid Rock on Billboard 200". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
  26. ↑ "Glee at #1 for Two Weeks in a Row" (Press release). PR Newswire. November 24, 2010. Retrieved November 25, 2010.
  27. ↑ Trust, Gary (November 24, 2010). "Weekly Chart Notes: Rihanna, Gwyneth Paltrow, the Beatles". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
  28. ↑ Williams, John (November 24, 2010). "Rihanna gets 'Loud' at No. 1". JAM! Music. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
  29. ↑ Caulfield, Keith (December 1, 2010). "Kanye West, Nicki Minaj Score Big Debuts on Billboard 200". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
  30. ↑ Williams, John (December 1, 2010). "Kanye has beautiful chart debut". Jam! Music. CANOE. Retrieved December 1, 2010.
  31. 1 2 Williams, John (December 15, 2010). "'Glee' holiday album hits No. 1". JAM! Music. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved December 15, 2010.
  32. ↑ Caulfield, Keith (December 15, 2010). "Boyle's 'Gift' Keeps Giving on Billboard 200, 'Tron' Hits Top 10". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved September 6, 2011.
  33. 1 2 "RIAA Gold & Platinum". Recording Industry Association of America. Archived from the original on February 25, 2013. Retrieved January 14, 2011.
  34. ↑ Grein, Paul (April 27, 2011). "Week Ending April 24, 2011. Albums: Real Or TV?". Chart Watch. Yahoo! Music. Retrieved April 27, 2011.
  35. ↑ Paul Grein (August 7, 2013). "Week Ending Aug. 4, 2013. Albums: Robin Thicke, Call Katy Perry". Yahoo Chart Watch.
  36. 1 2 "Top 100 Individual Artist Albums: Week ending 2nd December 2010". Irish Recorded Music Association. December 2, 2010. Archived from the original on May 11, 2012. Retrieved December 3, 2010.
  37. 1 2 3 4 "Soundtrack / Glee Cast - Glee - The Music - The Christmas Album (Album)" (in Dutch). dutchcharts.nl. Hung Medien. Retrieved December 7, 2010.
  38. 1 2 "Top 40 Official UK Albums Archive: 11th December 2010". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 5, 2010.
  39. ↑ "Chart Highlights: Country, Rock Songs & More". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. December 6, 2010. Retrieved December 6, 2010.
  40. ↑ "Chart Highlights: Pop, Dance/Club Play Songs & More". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. December 13, 2010. Retrieved December 13, 2010.
  41. ↑ "Chart Highlights: Adult Pop, Country Songs & More". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. December 20, 2010. Retrieved December 20, 2010.
  42. ↑ "Up on the Housetop". The Hymns and Carols of Christmas. Retrieved September 6, 2011.
  43. ↑ Loesser, Susan (1993). A Most Remarkable Fella: Frank Loesser and the Guys and Dolls in His Life; A Portrait by His Daughter. Hal Leonard. pp. 79–81. ISBN 1-55611-364-1.
  44. ↑ Victor Mixed Chorus & Trinity Choir, et. al. "Christmas Songs and Carols". Library of Congress. 10 October 1912. http://www.loc.gov/jukebox/recordings/detail/id/2889
  45. ↑ Nebe Quartett. "O, Tannenbaum". Free Music Archive. 31 August 1905. http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Nebe-Quartett/Holiday_Selections_from_wwwcylinderde/edgm-15354
  46. ↑ Paul Mickelson Orchestra & Choir. "Gloria in Excelsis Deo/Angels We Have Heard on High". Second Hand Songs. 1957. https://secondhandsongs.com/performance/291717/versions
  47. ↑ Archbold, Matthew. "Christmas Eve, 1906: A Miracle". National Catholic Register. 27 October 2013. http://m.ncregister.com/blog/matthew-archbold/christmas-eve-1906.-a-miracle#.WIrr34E8LYU
  48. ↑ Google. who first recorded deck the halls
  49. ↑ Bronk, Bill. "Ho Ho Ho! Santa Claus is Back in Town". Goldmine. 23 December 2016. http://www.goldminemag.com/article/ho-ho-ho-santa-claus-back-town
  50. ↑ Glee Cast. "Glee: The Music, the Christmas Album Vol. 1". Columbia/20th-Century Fox Music. 2010.
  51. ↑ Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album (CD booklet). Glee Cast. Columbia. 2010. p. 3. 88697 78567 2.
  52. ↑ "Holiday Albums: Week of December 25, 2010". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved January 14, 2011.
  53. ↑ http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/charts/yearendcharts/2011/canadian-albums
  54. ↑ "Billboard 200 Year-End 2011". Retrieved 2012-05-04.
  55. ↑ "ARIA Charts - Accreditations - 2010 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. December 31, 2010. Archived from the original on January 25, 2012. Retrieved July 6, 2011.
  56. ↑ "2010 Certification Awards - Gold". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
  57. ↑ "Certified Awards". BPI. Archived from the original on July 1, 2016. Retrieved November 27, 2013.
  58. ↑ "Glee:the Music". Amazon.de. Retrieved November 13, 2010.
  59. ↑ "Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album". iTunes Store Australia. Retrieved November 19, 2010.
  60. ↑ "Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album". iTunes Store Canada. Retrieved November 16, 2010.
  61. ↑ "Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album" (in Spanish). iTunes Store Mexico. Retrieved November 16, 2010.
  62. ↑ "Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album". iTunes Store Ireland. Retrieved November 19, 2010.
  63. ↑ "Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album" (in Dutch). iTunes Store Netherlands. Retrieved November 19, 2010.
  64. ↑ "Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album" (in German). iTunes Store Switzerland. Retrieved November 19, 2010.
  65. ↑ "Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album". Amazon.com. Retrieved October 27, 2010.
  66. ↑ "Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album". iTunes Store United States. Retrieved November 27, 2010.
  67. ↑ "Glee The Music; Christmas Album". Sanity. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
  68. ↑ ""Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album" available 19th November". Sony Music Entertainment Ireland. Retrieved October 27, 2010.
  69. ↑ "歡樂合唱團慶聖誕 Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album" (in Chinese). Sony Music Entertainment (Taiwan). Retrieved June 6, 2011.
  70. ↑ "Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album" (in Danish). iTunes Store Denmark. Retrieved November 16, 2010.
  71. ↑ "Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album". iTunes Store Finland. Retrieved November 16, 2010.
  72. ↑ "Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album". iTunes Store New Zealand. Retrieved November 16, 2010.
  73. ↑ "Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album". iTunes Store Norway. Retrieved November 16, 2010.
  74. ↑ "Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album". iTunes Store Portugal. Retrieved November 16, 2010.
  75. ↑ "Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album" (in Spanish). iTunes Store Spain. Retrieved November 16, 2010.
  76. ↑ "Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved November 3, 2010.
  77. ↑ "Glee: The Music - The Christmas Album". iTunes Store United Kingdom. Retrieved November 3, 2010.
  78. ↑ "Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album". sonymusic.pl. Retrieved December 6, 2010.
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