Christmas Album (Boney M. album)

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This article is about the 1981 release. For the 1984 release, see Christmas with Boney M.
Christmas Album
Boney M. - Christmas Album (1981).jpg
Studio album by
Boney M.
Released23 November 1981
Recorded1978, 1981
GenreR&B, Christmas, Eurodisco
Length44:11
LabelAtlantic (UK)
Hansa (FRG)
ProducerFrank Farian
Boney M. chronology
Boonoonoonoos
(1981) 		Christmas Album
(1981) 		Ten Thousand Lightyears
(1984)
Singles from Christmas Album
  1. "Little Drummer Boy"
    Released: 1981
  2. "Zion's Daughter"
    Released: November 1982
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic3/5 stars[1]

Christmas Album is the sixth studio album by Boney M. It was recorded in the summer of 1981 and released on 23 November 1981. The album, which in certain territories was given the alternate title Christmas with Boney M., was issued just three weeks after the moderately successful Boonoonoonoos and had originally been planned as Liz Mitchell's first solo album.[citation needed] After the lukewarm reception of Boonoonoonoos, plans were, however, changed, and it was instead released under the name Boney M. to strengthen the band's declining commercial position.

The album includes the million-selling 1978 Christmas number one "Mary's Boy Child/Oh My Lord" and it yielded two further single releases, "Little Drummer Boy" which turned out to be a Top 20 hit in Germany. A second single was released for Christmas 1982, "Zion's Daughter" (with new member Reggie Tsiboe pictured on the cover), but failed to chart. "Feliz Navidad" was chosen as a single in Scandinavia, and Spain opted for "Jingle Bells". Ariola (Spain) furthermore issued "White Christmas" in 1983. "Christmas Album" achieved Platinum sales in 1983.

Christmas Album, which was given the title Mary's Boy Child: The Christmas Album in the UK, was to be the final Boney M. album release on the Atlantic Records label, even though they would remain with the company in Canada and Japan to 1986.

One of the biggest commercial hits of 1981 was the Dutch "Stars on 45" Beatles cover medley, a number one single in the US and number two in the UK. To promote the albums Boonoonoonoos and Christmas Album, Frank Farian created a thirteen-minute medley in the style of Stars on 45 called "6 Years of Boney M. Hits (Boney M. on 45)", which was issued as both A- and B-side singles in certain territories. In the UK it was the B-side of Boonoonoonoos 12" single "We Kill the World (Don't Kill the World)", in Germany the edited 7" version was the B-side of Christmas Album single "Little Drummer Boy", and in January 1982 it was repackaged and released as the A-side.

Later in the 1980s, the tracks of Christmas Album, with the notable exception of the instrumental "Winter Fairy-Tale" and the closing song "I'll Be Home for Christmas", were to be remixed and re-issued as Die 20 schönsten Weihnachtslieder der Welt, The 20 Greatest Christmas Songs, The Most Beautiful Christmas Songs of the World, Happy Christmas, A Wonderful Christmas Time, and Christmas Party.

Despite being the preferred version of their Christmas recordings by Boney M., it can only be found on Spotify as a 1991 reissue called “Happy Christmas” with four of the 1984 recordings as bonus tracks.

Track listing[]

Side A:

  1. "Little Drummer Boy" (Katherine K. Davis, Henry Onorati, Harry Simeone) - 4:21
  2. "White Christmas" (Irving Berlin) - 4:19
  3. "Feliz Navidad" (José Feliciano) - 3:07
  4. "Jingle Bells" (James Lord Pierpont, Frank Farian) - 2:53
  5. "Winter Fairy-Tale" (Instrumental) (Harald Baierl) - 2:58
  6. "Mary's Boy Child - Oh My Lord" (Jester Hairston, Hela Lorin, Frank Farian, Fred Jay) - 5:10
    • Edited version

Side B:

  1. Christmas Medley: "Silent Night, Holy Night (Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht)"/ "Snow Falls Over The Ground (Leise Rieselt Der Schnee)" / "Hear Ye the Message" (Franz Xaver Gruber, Joseph Mohr, Eduard Ebel, Frank Farian, Fred Jay) - 6:20
    • The 2nd verse of "Silent Night" is sung in German on the German LP release but in English on the UK release. The full-length medley contained "Sweet Bells ("Süßer die Glocken nie klingen")" which wasn't released until 1986 when the medley was remixed and overdubbed.
  2. "Petit Papa Noël" (Martinet, Vincy) - 1:41
  3. "Zion's Daughter (Tochter Zion)" (Traditional, George Frideric Handel, Frank Farian, Fred Jay, Helmut Rulofs) - 3:51
  4. "When a Child Is Born" (Fred Jay, Zacar) - 3:20
  5. "Darkness Is Falling" (Fred Jay, Helmut Rulofs) - 3:02
  6. "I'll Be Home for Christmas" (Catherine Courage, Frank Farian, Helmut Rulofs) - 3:44

Personnel[]

Production[]

  • Kurt Rieth - Choir Director
  • Frank Farian - producer
  • Helmut Rulofs - assistant producer
  • Harry Baierl - musical arranger
  • Stefan Klinkhammer - musical arranger
  • Recorded at Abbey Road Studios and AIR Studios, London
  • Steve Nye - sound engineer
  • Recorded at Vigilant Studio, Nice
  • Didier Utard - engineer
  • Recorded at Union Studio, Munich
  • Jochen Scheffer - engineer
  • Recorded at Rainbow studio, Munich
  • Volker Armand - engineer
  • Mixed at Farian Studio
  • Ariola-Eurodisc Studios - design
  • Claus Lange - photography

Release history[]

CD releases[]

  • 1991 Germany: Hansa 254 300-222.

Charts[]

Album
Year Chart Position
1981 Germany's album chart 14
Single
Year Single Germany
1981 "Little Drummer Boy" 20
1982 "Zion's Daughter" -

Single releases[]

Germany
7"

  • "Little Drummer Boy" - 4:27 / "6 Years Of Boney M. Hits (Boney M. on 45)" (7" Edit) - 4:48 (Hansa Records 103 777-100, 1981)
  • "Zion's Daughter" - 3:50 / "White Christmas" - 3:15 (Hansa 104-874-100, 1982)

12"

  • "6 Years Of Boney M Hits (Boney M. on 45)" (12" Mix - edited version omitting "Mary's Boy Child/Oh My Lord") - 11:13 / "Little Drummer Boy" - 4:27 (Hansa 600 479-213, 1981)

Certifications and sales[]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[2] 2× Platinum 200,000^
Germany — ~200,000[3]

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References[]

  1. ^ Christmas Album at AllMusic
  2. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Boney M – Christmas Album". Music Canada. Retrieved August 28, 2020.
  3. ^ "West Germany - Domestic Product Makes Chart Inroads". Billboard. Vol. 94 no. 2. 16 January 1982. p. 48. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 17 June 2021 – via Google Books.

Sources and external links[]

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