Jackson 5 Christmas Album was the first Christmas album, and fourth studio album, by Motown family quintet the Jackson 5, released on October 15, 1970. Included on the Christmas Album is the Jacksons' hit single version of "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town". The Jacksons' versions of "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" and "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" remain frequent radio requests during the Christmas season.[1] The album spent four weeks at the number one position on Billboard magazine's special Christmas Albums chart that the magazine published in December 1970, making it the best-selling Christmas album of that year and also of the year 1972 in the United States.[2][3] This album was a top seller and had the potential to chart high on the US Billboard Top LPs ranking, but from 1963 to 1973, holiday albums were not allowed to chart in it. The album has been praised by music critics and has since sold over 3 million copies worldwide.[4]
| Jackson 5 Christmas Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 15, 1970 | |||
| Recorded | 1970 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 34:13 | |||
| Label | Motown | |||
| Producer | ||||
| The Jackson 5 chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Alternative cover | ||||
 2009 remaster | ||||
| Singles from Jackson 5 Christmas Album | ||||
| ||||
In the US, the album was released on CD in 1986. In 2003, Universal Motown re-released the album as part of their 20th Century Masters - The Christmas Collection series. This version of the album was remastered and included the Michael Jackson solo song "Little Christmas Tree" as a bonus track (from the various artists compilation A Motown Christmas, originally released in 1973). In 2009, the album was once again re-released as Ultimate Christmas Collection, with Christmas greetings from four of the band members, remixes, and a medley of songs from the album.
Release
editThe release of Jackson 5 Christmas Album in October 1970 marked the end of a successful year for the band. Three albums were released by the group, with ABC in May and Third Album in September, with a tour running from May to December. The group recreated a similar feat the following year, with Maybe Tomorrow hitting record stores in April, the Goin' Back to Indiana soundtrack in September, and a greatest hits collection in December, with a tour which ran from January to August. In addition, Michael Jackson's solo debut single "Got to Be There", also hit the music stands in October, with the complete album of the same name coming out in January 1972.
Reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [5] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide |  [6] |
Jackson 5 Christmas Album has been hailed by many as one of the best holiday albums.[7] AllMusic's Lindsay Planer rated Jackson 5 Christmas Album four and a half out of five stars. She stated that "they carefully crafted and significantly modernized familiar seasonal selections." She also praised all of the tracks. Joshua Alston of The A.V. Club also praised the album and said "the original songs are among its finest moments". He also said "Jackson 5 Christmas is tough to compete with because it isn't—as Christmas records so often are—an inessential brand extension or bait for discography completists. It's a potent distillation of the spirit of Christmas, an album joyful enough to make me feel like it's the most wonderful time of the year rather than merely telling me so."[8] Rolling Stone also praised the album, calling it a "gem".[6]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" | Ralph Blane, Hugh Martin | 5:19 |
| 2. | "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" | J. Fred Coots, Haven Gillespie | 2:24 |
| 3. | "The Christmas Song" | Robert Wells, Mel Tormé | 2:45 |
| 4. | "Up on the House Top" | Benjamin Hanby; arranged and adapted by the Corporation | 3:16 |
| 5. | "Frosty the Snowman" | Steve Nelson, Jack Rollins | 2:39 |
| 6. | "The Little Drummer Boy" | K.K. Davis, Henry Onorati, Harry Simeone | 3:15 |
| 7. | "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" | Johnny Marks | 2:32 |
| 8. | "Christmas Won't Be the Same This Year" | Pam Sawyer, LaVerne Ware | 2:31 |
| 9. | "Give Love on Christmas Day" | Berry Gordy Jr., Fonce Mizell, Freddie Perren, Deke Richards | 2:44 |
| 10. | "Someday at Christmas" | Ron Miller, Bryan Wells | 2:44 |
| 11. | "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" | Tommie Connor | 3:01 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Little Christmas Tree" | George Clinton, Artie Wayne | 3:37 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Season's Greetings from Michael Jackson" | 0:09 | |
| 13. | "Little Christmas Tree" | Clinton, Wayne | 3:37 |
| 14. | "Season's Greetings from Tito Jackson" | 0:06 | |
| 15. | "Up on the Housetop" (DJ Spinna Re-Edit) | Hanby, arranged and adapted by the Corporation | 5:00 |
| 16. | "Season's Greetings from Jackie Jackson" | 0:07 | |
| 17. | "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" (Stripped Mix) | Marks | 3:04 |
| 18. | "Season's Greetings from Jermaine Jackson" | 0:07 | |
| 19. | "Someday at Christmas" (Stripped Mix) | Miller, Wells | 2:44 |
| 20. | "Give Love on Christmas Day" (Group A Cappella Version) | Gordy Jr., Mizell, Perren, Richards | 3:37 |
| 21. | "J5 Christmas Medley" | 3:51 |
Source:[5]
Personnel
editProduction
- Hal Davis – producer
- The Corporation – producers
- James Anthony Carmichael, Gene Page – arrangements
Technical
- Adam Abrams – production coordinator
- Harry Weinger – supervisor
- Vartan – art direction
- Alana Coghlan, Katherine Marking – design
Charts
edit| Chart (1970–2024) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian Albums (RPM) | 45 |
| Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[9] | 32 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[10] | 30 |
| Lithuanian Albums (AGATA)[11] | 26 |
| Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[12] | 40 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[13] | 30 |
| US Billboard 200[14] | 36 |
References
edit- ^ "Jackson 5 - Santa Claus Is Coming To Town - Listen on Online Radio Box". OnlineRadioBox.com. Retrieved Apr 13, 2020.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 153. ISBN 0-89820-161-6.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Christmas in the Charts (1920–2004). Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 182. ISBN 0-89820-161-6.
- ^ "Michael Jackson: list of his records". The Telegraph. 2009-06-26. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
- ^ a b https://www.allmusic.com/album/r9998
- ^ a b Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian David (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon and Schuster. p. 410. ISBN 9780743201698. Archived from the original on 2019-10-12. Retrieved 2020-03-03.
rolling stone jackson 5 album guide.
- ^ "Album review: 'Jackson 5 Christmas Album'". Dec 11, 2017. Archived from the original on April 2, 2019. Retrieved Apr 13, 2020.
- ^ "Jackson 5 Christmas Album is the antidote to holiday cynicism and fatigue". Music. 9 December 2014. Archived from the original on November 22, 2019. Retrieved Apr 13, 2020.
- ^ "Hitlisten.NU – Album Top-40 Uge 1, 2024". Hitlisten. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Jackson 5 – Christmas Album" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
- ^ "2021 52-os savaitės klausomiausi (Top 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. December 31, 2021. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
- ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Jackson 5 – Christmas Album". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Jackson 5 – Christmas Album". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
- ^ "Billboard 200: Week of January 7, 2023". Billboard. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
External links
edit- Jackson 5 Christmas Album at Discogs (list of releases)