Christmas
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 10, 2002
GenreCountry, Christmas
Length39:48
LabelWarner Bros. Nashville
ProducerJim Ed Norman
Clay Walker chronology
Say No More
(2001)
Christmas
(2002)
A Few Questions
(2003)

Christmas is the first Christmas album by American country music singer Clay Walker. It was released September 10, 2002, on Warner Bros. Records. It features Walker's renditions of various Christmas songs. "Blue Christmas" and "Feliz Navidad" both charted on the Hot Country Songs charts from Christmas airplay.

Background

Walker told Country France, "The Christmas album we just made should be coming out right now. The thing I like about it so much is all of the songs are standards. No written, new material. I would rather personally sing along to a standard myself. So I just put myself in other people’s place. The thing I like the most about it is that it has orchestra, strings, horns, real orchestra, its costs a lot of money to make."[1]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Silent Night/Away in a Manger"Franz Xaver Gruber, Joseph Mohr, James R. Murray3:41
2."Mary, Did You Know?"Buddy Greene, Mark Lowry4:50
3."O Come All Ye Faithful"Frederick Oakeley, John Francis Wade3:39
4."Go Tell It on the Mountain"Traditional3:03
5."I'll Be Home for Christmas"Buck Ram, Kim Gannon, Walter Kent3:50
6."Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer"Johnny Marks3:12
7."Winter Wonderland"Felix Bernard, Dick Smith3:29
8."Please Come Home for Christmas"Charles Brown, Gene Redd5:11
9."Frosty the Snowman"Walter E. Rollins, Steve Edward Nelson2:43
10."White Christmas"Irving Berlin3:33
11."Feliz Navidad"José Feliciano2:37

Personnel

  • David Angell violin
  • Monisa Angell violin
  • Janet Askey violin
  • Sam Bacco chimes, cymbals, marimba, orchestra bells, percussion, sleigh bells, timpani, xylophone
  • Eddie Bayers drums, percussion
  • Mike Bradley engineer, mixing
  • Mark Capps production assistant
  • Mark Casstevens acoustic guitar
  • Lisa Cochran choir
  • Ernie Collins bass trombone
  • Travis Cottrell choir, background vocals
  • Jackie Cusic choir
  • David Davidson violin
  • Tim Davis choir
  • Mark Douthit saxophone
  • Connie Ellisor violin
  • Jane Escueta violin
  • Christopher Farrell viola
  • Kim Fleming choir, background vocals
  • Steve Gibson acoustic guitar, electric guitar
  • Carl Gorodetzky concert master, violin
  • Allen Green children's voices
  • Barry Green trombone
  • Jim Grosjean viola
  • Marshall Hall choir, background vocals
  • Stephanie Hall choir
  • Vicki Hampton choir, background vocals
  • Mike Haynes flugelhorn, trumpet
  • Aubrey Haynie fiddle
  • David Hoffner keyboards, programming
  • Jim Horn baritone saxophone
  • David Hungate bass guitar
  • Mark Ivey choir, background vocals
  • Jack Jezzro bass guitar
  • Marabeth Jordan choir
  • Danny Kee production assistant
  • Lee Larrison violin
  • Chris McDonald trombone
  • Anthony LaMarchina cello
  • Joey Miskulin accordion
  • Doug Moffitt piccolo, saxophone
  • Cate Myer violin
  • The Nashville String Machine strings
  • Steve Nathan keyboards, piano
  • Craig Nelson bass
  • Jim Ed Norman producer
  • Gary Van Osdale viola
  • Mary Kathryn Van Osdale violin
  • Steve Patrick trumpet
  • Linda Patterson french horn
  • Carole Rabinwitz-Neuen cello
  • Gary Robinson choir
  • Lisa Silver choir
  • Oliver Silver children's voices
  • Pamela Sixfin violin
  • Betty Small violin
  • Dennis Solee clarinet
  • Liz Stewart bass
  • Julie Tanner cello
  • Joe Tassi production assistant
  • Bobby G. Taylor french horn, oboe
  • Simon Taylor children's voices
  • George Tidwell trumpet
  • Alan Umstead viola
  • Catherine Umstead violin
  • Cindy Richardson Walker choir
  • Clay Walker lead vocals
  • Bergen White string arrangements, string conductor
  • Kris Wilkinson viola
  • Hank Williams mastering
  • Dennis Wilson choir
  • Karen Winkelmann violin
  • Clare Yang viola

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
About.com(favorable)[2]
Allmusic[3]
Chicago Sun Times[4]
Cincinnati Post(favorable)[5]
Country Standard Time(favorable)[6]
Denver Post(favorable)[7]
USA Today(favorable)[8]

Editors at The Cincinnati Post wrote "You might not be able to pick Clay Walker out of a lineup of second-tier country singers, but don't overlook this CD. Producer Jim Ed Norman paid careful attention to instrumentation, expertly meshing oboe, harp and everything else at his disposal with Walker's toned-down twang. Highlights include a heartfelt "Mary Did You Know" and a spirited "Go Tell It on the Mountain" with hand- clapping gospel choir and funky organ."[5] Editors at USA Today wrote, "Walker sounds like a cowboy on some tracks, a crooner on others -- and he also displays rarely heard R&B and Mexican influences."[8] The Denver Post printed, "Simple, straightforward takes on 'Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, 'Please Come Home for Christmas,' and 'Frosty the Snowman' stand out on a CD that also contains good versions of 'Go Tell It on the Mountain,' 'Mary Did You Know' and 'O Come All Ye Faithful.' Walker ends it with a bang- up, toe-tapping version of 'Feliz Navidad.'"[7]

Bobby Reed of The Chicago Sun Times gave the album 2+12 stars out of five and wrote, "Clay Walker is an odd candidate for recording a Christmas album, given his vocal limitations. There are some inspired moments in this straightforward collection, including a mid-song recitation in "Mary Did You Know" and the bright brass riffs that enliven "Feliz Navidad." Throughout the disc, however, the harmony singers fail to seamlessly mesh with Walker's lead vocals."[4] Editors at About.com gave the album a favorable review writing "If you're a Clay Walker fan, you'll want to pick this up. If you're looking for traditional Christmas music, you'll find it here. Not much out of the ordinary here, but an adequate album."[2] Brian Wahlert of Country Standard Time gave the album a positive review and said, "Although he doesn't always succeed here, the highlights are gratifying, and Walker should be applauded for taking a risk."[6]

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (2002) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums 54

References

  1. "Clay Walker - Interview exclusif" (in French). Country-france.fr. Archived from the original on 2012-03-25. Retrieved 2011-08-03.
  2. 1 2 "CD Review: Christmas - Clay Walker". Countrymusic.about.com. 2011-02-24. Archived from the original on 2011-08-03. Retrieved 2011-08-03.
  3. AllMusic Clay Walker - Christmas
  4. 1 2 Reed, Bobby The Chicago Sun Times Holiday hits--and CD misses, too (15 December 2002).
  5. 1 2 The Cincinnati Post Santa's bag is filled with Christmas CDs (12 December 2002).
  6. 1 2 Wahlert, Brian Country Standard TimeClay Walker Christmas
  7. 1 2 The Denver Post Music 'Silent Night'? Not with all these CDs Collections mean happy holidays (13 December 2002)
  8. 1 2 USA Today As is their seasonal custom, USA TODAY music critics Elysa Gardner, Edna Gundersen, Steve Jones, Brian Mansfield and Ken Barnes provide a guide to this year's new holiday music offerings. (9 December 2002)
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