New York, NY (Top40 Charts) With the holiday season in full swing, UMe/Universal
Music has all the music to get you in the Yuletide spirit and help you turn up the joy. From essential Christmas albums and classic collections on vinyl and CD to new original holiday songs by legendary artists to dynamic and diverse holiday playlists on Spotify and Apple to newly-created animated videos for some of the biggest songs in the Christmas canon and a unique holiday hub with a variety of merry video playlists, there's now more ways than ever to enjoy the music of the season and brighten your festivities.
UMe's aptly-titled Christmas playlist features some of the most popular songs and artists across the holiday music canon, pairing timeless classics with contemporary favorites. The hours-long -and ever-expanding - playlist is available now for streaming on Spotify and Apple.
UMe has partnered with legendary artists and estates to create vibrant new visuals for holiday songs that have never before had a video. The initiative includes animated clips for
Bobby Helm's "Jingle Bell Rock," Brenda Lee's "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree," Burl Ives' "Holly Jolly Christmas," Dean Martin's "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!," Frank Sinatra's "Jingle Bells.
The videos can be experienced at UMe's interactive online holiday hub ChristmasMusic.TV which includes three eclectic video playlists spanning Classic Christmas, Motown and Pop, featuring the best modern Christmas videos. Fire it up this year at your holiday festivities or in your home or office for a festive visual cornucopia that's sure to be the perfect antidote to the tired ol' yule log.
Experience it now at ChristmasMusic.TV
Bing Crosby: Bing at Christmas (CD/Digital)
Bing At Christmas (Decca/UMe) is a new holiday album that sets Bing Crosby's original vocals to newly recorded orchestral arrangements, performed by the UK's most prestigious orchestra, The London Symphony Orchestra. The album breathes new life into many of the best Christmas songs in existence, including Bing's biggest hit and the world's best-selling single, his 1942 recording of "White Christmas." With worldwide sales exceeding 50 million copies and more than 1.8 billion streams to date, Bing's "
White Christmas" is the epitome of Christmas in song. Bing at Christmas also features a version of "
White Christmas" pairing Bing's vocals with the voices of acclaimed a cappella group Pentatonix, as well as exquisite arrangements of "Winter Wonderland," "It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas," "The Christmas Song," Bing's duet with
David Bowie for "Peace On Earth /
Little Drummer Boy," recorded in
September 1977, just one month before Bing's death, and more.
Bryan Adams: Christmas EP (Digital)
Bryan Adams new Christmas EP (Polydor Records/UMe) is a festive 5-track digital album that includes "Joe and Mary," an original track from the GRAMMY®-award winning singer-songwriter, as well as a new recording of the Christmas classic "Must Be Santa," which was previously covered by Bob Dylan. Also included are three remastered holiday recordings from his past: "Christmas Time," "Reggae Christmas" and "Merry Christmas." The album is accompanied with a video for "Joe And Mary," directed by Adams and starring the Canadian rocker reimagining the classic Christmas story of Joseph and Mary, cruising around Vancouver in a vintage Buick car with his very own pregnant "Mary" looking for shelter. The video is a great accompaniment to the track and will bring a festive smile to viewers. Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nc-PqW28lC8
Brenda Lee: Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree - The Decca Christmas Recordings (LP)
For the first time, all 18 of Brenda Lee's Christmas recordings she recorded for Decca Records in the '50s and '60s are now available on vinyl on Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree: The Decca Christmas Recordings (Decca/MCA Nashville/UMe). Originally released in 1999 on CD, the new vinyl edition commemorates the compilation's 20th anniversary and is available on standard weight black vinyl. The collection includes her first holiday single "Christy Christmas," and the twangy b-side "I'm Gonna Lasso
Santa Claus," from her very first recording session when she was just 11 years old as well as every song from her 1964 full-length holiday album, Merry Christmas From Brenda Lee, which has been out-of-print on vinyl for more than three decades. It includes her inspired takes on holiday hits, "Jingle Bell Rock," "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town," "Silver Bells," "Winter Wonderland," "Blue Christmas," "A Marshmallow World," and "Frosty The Snowman." Other highlights include the orchestral "This Time Of Year," the melancholy ballad "Christmas Will Be Just Another Lonely Day," and longtime fan favorite "The
Angel and The
Little Blue Bell." The vinyl release also boasts three tracks originally only available on the Japanese release of her 1964 album which are all making their U.S. vinyl debut: "White Christmas," "
Silent Night" and "Jingle Bells."
Diana Ross: Wonderful Christmas Time (2LP black vinyl/Limited ed. 2LP translucent red vinyl)
The spirit and sound of the iconic angelic voice of
Diana Ross rings bright again this holiday season with the vinyl reissue of her classic Wonderful Christmas Time. The 20-track collection is available for the first time in two physical configurations, a standard black 2LP, a limited-edition translucent red 2LP. Wonderful Christmas Time is also available on CD and all major digital platforms from Ross Records/UMe. The album features covers of standards, from "
Sleigh Ride" to "White Christmas," to more recent season favorites from Paul McCartney's "
Wonderful Christmastime" to Stevie Wonder's "Overjoyed." Ms. Ross is also accompanied by the London Symphony Orchestra on five stunning recordings: "Sleigh Ride / Jingle Bells," "O
Little Town Of Bethlehem," "Go Tell It On The Mountain," "The First Noël," and "I Heard The Bells." Wonderful Christmas Time was personally curated by executive producer, Ms. Ross.
The Jacks: In The Bleak Midwinter (Digital)
Los Angeles-based rock 'n' roll band The Jacks new digital single, "In The Bleak Midwinter" (EDGEOUT Records/UMe), is an exciting change for the original carol; taking it from a traditional choir ensemble and giving it a refreshing rock and roll spin. Produced by GRAMMY®-winning engineer/mixer Thom Russo, the song was recorded in Southern California on a hot summer day, but regardless, The Jacks added their spirit of the holidays to the song.
Ramsey Lewis Trio: More
Sounds Of Christmas (CD/LP)
Ramsey Lewis' More
Sounds of Christmas is the 1964 Argo follow-up to his very popular 1961 release, Sound of Christmas. It features Ramsey's trio throughout, as well as a number of tracks with string arrangements. The stand-out track is the trio's deeply-swinging version of "
Jingle Bells" - with the melody played on pizzicato cello. The track was a hit upon its initial release and is a natural addition to Christmas playlists. The only prior release was on an exceptionally rare Universal Japan CD coupled with the Sound of Christmas album.
Robbie Robertson - Happy Holidays (Digital)
Legendary songwriter and musician Robbie Robertson's new holiday song "Happy Holidays" is an irreverent take on the holiday tune tradition, juxtaposing tongue-in-cheek lyrics about the duality of the yuletide season with some beautiful guitar melodies. "We love Christmas and the holidays, it brings good cheer, and also stress and depression, so I wanted to do a song that celebrates both sides and have a little fun," says Robertson. The recently recorded song, which features Robertson playing a variety of instruments, is now available to stream, download and add to your holiday playlists. Robertson is donating his proceeds from the song to the American Indian College Fund.
The
Temptations - Christmas Card (Black vinyl/Limited ed. white vinyl)
The Temptations' Christmas Card (Motown/UMe) is the 1970 Christmas album by The
Temptations for the Gordy (Motown) label. The group's first holiday release, it features each Temptation leading on various popular Christmas standards and original songs and includes their takes on "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer," "Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town," "White Christmas," "Silver Bells" and "The
Little Drummer Boy." Now available back on vinyl for the first time in nearly 40 years, the perennial holiday favorite has been pressed both on standard black as well as limited edition white vinyl.
Vince Gill: The Christmas Collection (2LP)
Country star Vince Gill's 1993's platinum, #1 Billboard Holiday Album, Let There Be Peace On Earth and 1998's Breath of Heaven, recorded with the Patrick Williams Orchestra, are now available together on vinyl as the double LP, The Christmas Collection. The set includes such classics as "Santa Claus is Coming to Town," "The Christmas Song," and "Have Yourself a Merry
Little Christmas." The 21-time GRAMMY®-award-winning artist also lends his voice to Elvis Presley's 1957 hit, "Blue Christmas."
Also included in the package are Gill's classic versions of "O Holy Night," "Let There Be Peace On Earth," featuring a then 11-year-old daughter Jenny Gill, and "Breath of Heaven," a song co-written by Gill's wife and star of the Contemporary Christian genre, Amy Grant.
