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Where Are You Christmas?

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"Christmas, Why Can't I Find You?" is a song written by Mariah Carey, James Horner and Will Jennings for the movie How the Grinch Stole Christmas in 2000.[1] In the film, it is first sung by Taylor Momsen, who played Cindy Lou Who.[2]

"Where Are You Christmas?"
Single by Faith Hill
from the album Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
ReleasedDecember 11, 2000
Recorded2000
Genre
Length4:07
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Faith Hill singles chronology
"Let's Make Love"
(2000) 		"Where Are You Christmas?"
(2000) 		"If My Heart Had Wings"
(2001)

Mariah Carey wrote a full-length pop version of the song with additional lyrics, renamed "Where Are You Christmas?", for the film's soundtrack. The song was originally recorded by Carey, but because of a legal case with her ex-husband Tommy Mottola, it could not be released, so it was re-recorded and released by Faith Hill.[2] A CD single of Hill's rendition was released December 11, 2000.[3] A video was released featuring Hill singing from the Grinch's mountaintop home, interspersed with clips from the film and a cameo appearance by Momsen as Cindy Lou Who.

Composition

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"Where Are You Christmas?" is a power ballad written by James Horner and Will Jennings, with additional lyrics provided by Mariah Carey.[2] The song is composed in the key of B♭ major and set to a slow tempo of 56 BPM.[4] Hill's vocals range almost two octaves, from F3 to E♭5.[4]

In a 2021 interview with Harper's Bazaar, Carey stated that she thought "up the song's bridge, which transforms melancholy into triumph, in the car en route to work with" Horner.[5]

Critical reception

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Billy Dukes of Taste of Country ranked "Where Are You Christmas?" at number 6 on a list of the top 50 country Christmas songs, writing that the song was "touching" and that "Hill performs it like a woman at the top of her game, which she certainly was".[6] Describing the song as underrated, Pip Ellwood-Hughes of Entertainment Focus praised Hill's vocal performance, writing that "[she] sounds incredible as she unleashes the full range of her powerful voice".[7]

Conversely, Cameron Martin of The Atlantic labeled the song as one of the top ten "most annoying" holiday songs.[8] Steve Simels of TV Guide was critical of "Where Are You Christmas?" in his review of the Grinch film, writing that "none but the thoroughly perverse of hearing should stick around for the closing credits and Faith Hill warbling" the song.[9]

Label dispute

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Mariah Carey (pictured) co-wrote the song but was denied release of her version due to an ongoing legal battle with her ex-husband. Carey has since expressed her wishes in releasing her version.[10]

The release of the song was involved with some controversy between American singer Mariah Carey, who co-wrote the song with James Horner and Will Jennings, against her former husband Tommy Mottola, the chairman and CEO of Sony Music at the time.[10] During their divorce, Mottola blocked Carey's release of the song due to an ongoing legal battle.[10]

In 2020, during the promotion for her memoir, Carey revealed on a Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen episode that "she did record it, and she does have the demo somewhere" but that she would have to "dig back into the vault to find [her] version".[10] In 2021, she said that she is "enthusiastic but hesitant" to release her version of the song.[5]

Cover versions

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"Where Are You Christmas?" has been covered by a variety of artists since its release, including the American vocal group Pentatonix who recorded an a cappella version of the song in 2018.[11]

Commercial performance

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"Where Are You Christmas?" peaked at number 10 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart in January 2001, becoming Hill's fifth top ten single at that format.[12] The song experienced crossover success at radio, peaking at number 26 on the Hot Country Songs chart and at number 40 on the Adult Pop Songs chart, in addition to reaching a peak position of 65 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2013, "Where Are You Christmas?" peaked at number 15 on the seasonal Holiday 100 chart,[13] on which it has continued making appearances throughout the 2010s.[2] The song has never entered the Canadian Hot 100, but did reach a peak position of 38 of the Hot Canadian Digital Songs component chart in 2018.[14]

"Where Are You Christmas" was placed seventh[a] on the list of all-time best-selling Christmas/holiday digital singles in SoundScan history in 2016.[15] As of December 2019, total digital sales of the Faith Hill recording has reached 1,002,000 downloads according to Nielsen SoundScan.[16]

Charts

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Chart (2000–18) Peak
position
Canada Hot Digital Songs (Billboard)[14] 38
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[17] 37
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[18] 35
US Billboard Hot 100[19] 65
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[12] 10
US Adult Pop Airplay (Billboard)[20] 40
US Holiday 100 (Billboard)[13] 15
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[21] 26

Notes

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  1. ^ At the time of the article's publication in November 2016, the song ranked at number seven with a sales figure of 897,000. With certified sales of 977,000 as of December 2018, the song should now ostensibly rank at number six ahead of "Christmas Canon".

References

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  1. ^ "How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) - Soundtracks". IMDb.com. Retrieved August 10, 2013.
  2. ^ a b c d "Where Are You Christmas? Mariah Carey's Unsung Holiday Classic". Established in 1997. December 17, 2017. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  3. ^ "Where Are You Christmas?". Amazon UK. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  4. ^ a b "Faith Hill "Where Are You Christmas?" Sheet Music in B♭ Major". Universal Music Publishing Group via Musicnotes.com. 20 December 2000. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  5. ^ a b "The Queen of Christmas's Next Act". Harper's Bazaar. 21 December 2021. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  6. ^ Dukes, Billy (November 19, 2012). "No. 6: Faith Hill, 'Where Are You Christmas' - Top 50 Country Christmas Songs". Taste of Country. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  7. ^ Ellwood-Hughes, Pip (December 5, 2017). "EF Country Advent Calendar Day 5: Faith Hill – Where Are You Christmas?". Entertainment Focus. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  8. ^ Martin, Cameron (December 7, 2010). "The 10 Most Annoying and Ubiquitous Holiday Songs". The Atlantic. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  9. ^ Simels, Steve. "Dr. Seuss' How The Grinch Stole Christmas - Movie Reviews and Movie Ratings". TV Guide. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  10. ^ a b c d "The Untold Story of Mariah Carey's Lost Holiday Classic". Fansided. 22 November 2020. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  11. ^ "Pentatonix Creates A Cappella Version Of Faith Hill's "Where Are You, Christmas?"". Country Music Nation. Retrieved August 17, 2021.
  12. ^ a b "Faith Hill Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  13. ^ a b "Faith Hill Chart History (Holiday 100)". Billboard. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  14. ^ a b "Faith Hill Chart History (Hot Canadian Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  15. ^ Billboard Staff (November 25, 2016). "What Are the Top-Selling Holiday Songs?". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  16. ^ Bjorke, Matt (December 8, 2019). "Top 30 Digital Country Tracks - Pure Sales: December 9, 2019". Rough Stock. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
  17. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Faith Hill" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  18. ^ "Faith Hill – Where Are You Christmas?" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  19. ^ "Faith Hill Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  20. ^ "Faith Hill Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  21. ^ "Faith Hill Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
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