A Very Kacey Christmas

Last updated

A Very Kacey Christmas
Averykaceychristmas.jpg
Digital cover
Studio album by
Kacey Musgraves
ReleasedOctober 28, 2016 (2016-10-28)
Recorded2016
Genre
Length37:43
Label Mercury Nashville
Producer
  • Kacey Musgraves
  • Misa Arriaga
  • Kyle Ryan
Kacey Musgraves chronology
Pageant Material
(2015)		A Very Kacey Christmas
(2016)		 Golden Hour
(2018)

A Very Kacey Christmas is the third studio album and first Christmas album by American country music artist Kacey Musgraves, released on October 28, 2016, through Mercury Nashville. [2] Overall, it is Musgraves' sixth album, her third studio album, and first Christmas album. [3] Produced by Musgraves, Kyle Ryan and Misa Arriaga, it features eight traditional Christmas songs and four originals. [2] Special guest artists include Willie Nelson, The Quebe Sisters and Leon Bridges. [4]

Contents

Background and recording

Musgraves first announced she was working on a Christmas album on June 1, 2016, [5] before a formal announcement came on September 7, 2016. [2] In an interview with Rolling Stone published on September 8, 2016, Musgraves called working on the album "one of the most enriching musical experiences." [6] On recording the album, she states, "I really wanted to create a whimsical throwback holiday record, one that evokes feelings of nostalgia and simpler times. I think that the fine musicians and brains that were a part of this project have helped me create a body of music that can be added to people's classic collections." [6]

Musgraves describes the album as "part western swing sprinkled with bits of classic pop, hazy Hawaiian moments and child-like fun that all comes to a nostalgic, melancholy end and ultimately is very 'me,'" and adds, "There can be a touch of sad feelings and memories during the holiday season for a lot of people so I knew when I went in to write I wanted to include all the emotions this time of year can bring out." [4]

Promotion

In support of the album, Musgraves embarked on the "A Very Kacey Christmas" tour. It began November 26, 2016, in Windsor, Ontario, and concluded on December 21, 2016, in Fort Worth, TX. [7] The tour's production was bigger than a typical Musgraves tour. In addition to her band it featured a strings section, an accordion, bass, saxophone, clarinet and backup singers. [8]

Promotional appearances in the media included a performance of "Mele Kalikimaka" and "Christmas Makes Me Cry" on CMA's Country Christmas 2016 TV special. [9] Musgraves also performed live on Good Morning America on November 30, 2016, [10] The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on December 1, 2016, [11] The Talk on December 5, 2016, [12] and on Late Night with Seth Meyers on December 7, 2016. [13]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 82/100 [14]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [1]
Belfast Telegraph 8/10 [15]
Evening Standard Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [16]
Financial Times Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [17]
Los Angeles Times Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [18]
Pitchfork 6.8/10 [19]
Q Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [20]
Vice (Expert Witness) Five Pointed Star Solid.svg Five Pointed Star Solid.svg [21]

A Very Kacey Christmas received universal acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 82 based on 4 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". [14] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic rated the album four and a half out of five stars and calls it "a sharp, playful, and warm holiday record, the kind that evokes the past while feeling fresh and seeming destined for many years of annual spins." [1] Writing for Pitchfork and rating the album 6.8 out of 10, Marc Hogan states the album "glides naturally from her established Western-swing throwback aesthetic to kitschy exotica and vintage pop, with an expertly curated song selection that leans on campy novelties, classy standards, and a stocking’s worth of originals." [19]

Track listing

Source: AllMusic [1]

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" Hugh Martin, Ralph Blane 3:01
2."Let It Snow" (featuring The Quebe Sisters) Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne 2:23
3."Christmas Don't Be Late" Ross Bagdasarian Sr. 2:11
4."A Willie Nice Christmas" (featuring Willie Nelson and Trigger) Kacey Musgraves, Shane McAnally, Josh Osborne 3:24
5."Feliz Navidad" José Feliciano 3:22
6."Christmas Makes Me Cry"Musgraves, McAnally, Brandy Clark 2:47
7."Present Without a Bow" (featuring Leon Bridges)Musgraves, Leon Bridges, Austin Jenkins, Luke Laird 3:52
8."Mele Kalikimaka" (featuring The Quebe Sisters) Robert Alexander Anderson 2:53
9."I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas"John Rox2:26
10."Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" Johnny Marks 3:26
11."Ribbons and Bows"Musgraves, Julia Michaels, Justin Tranter 3:30
12."What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" Frank Loesser 4:28
Total length:37:43

Personnel

Credits adapted from AllMusic. [22]

Musicians

Technical personnel

Charts

A Very Kacey Christmas debuted at No. 143 on the Billboard 200, selling 4,800 copies in its first week of release. [23] The album reached a new peak position of 97 on the Billboard 200 chart dated December 17, 2016. [24] It later re-entered the charts on December 14, 2019 alongside Musgraves new Christmas special The Kacey Musgraves Christmas Special, reaching a new peak of 21. As of January 2017 the album has sold 55,100 copies in the US. [25]

Release history

RegionDateFormat(s)LabelRef.
United StatesOctober 28, 2016
 Mercury Nashville [32]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "A Very Kacey Christmas – Kacey Musgraves". AllMusic . All Media Network . Retrieved October 31, 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 Guilbault, Kristy (September 7, 2016). "Kacey Musgraves Announces First Holiday Album, A Very Kacey Christmas". Paste . Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Kacey Musgraves — Album Discography". AllMusic . All Media Network . Retrieved December 13, 2016.
  4. 1 2 Reuter, Annie (September 7, 2016). "Hear a Sampling of Kacey Musgraves' 'A Very Kacey Christmas' Album". Taste of Country . Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  5. ↑ Kacey Musgraves (June 1, 2016). "Kacey Musgraves - Timeline". Facebook. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
  6. 1 2 Betts, Stephen L. (September 8, 2016). "Kacey Musgraves Taps Willie Nelson for Christmas Album". Rolling Stone . Retrieved September 13, 2016.
  7. ↑ "Kacey Musgraves Plots Christmas Tour". Rolling Stone . September 28, 2016. Retrieved September 30, 2016.
  8. ↑ Tingle, Lauren (November 25, 2016). "Kacey Musgraves Readies A Very Kacey Christmas Tour". CMT.com. Archived from the original on November 26, 2016. Retrieved November 26, 2016.
  9. ↑ Stagnitta, Ali (November 28, 2016). "Kacey Musgraves Heats Up CMA Country Christmas With 'Mele Kalikimaka'". Hollywoodlife.com . Retrieved November 29, 2016.
  10. ↑ "Video: Kacey Musgraves Performs 'Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer' Live on 'GMA'". ABC. November 30, 2016. Retrieved November 30, 2016.
  11. ↑ Cantor, Brian (December 1, 2016). "Kacey Musgraves Performs "Present Without A Bow" On Jimmy Fallon's "Tonight Show" (Watch)". Headline Planet. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  12. ↑ "The Talk Video - 12-5-2016 - CBS.com". CBS. December 5, 2016. Archived from the original on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 5, 2016.
  13. ↑ "Kacey Musgraves: "Christmas Don't Be Late"". Yahoo!. December 8, 2016. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  14. 1 2 "Reviews for A Very Kacey Christmas by Kacey Musgraves". Metacritic . Retrieved March 13, 2018.
  15. ↑ Howdle, Rachel (December 23, 2016). "Albums of the week: Katie Melua – In Winter, Kacey Musgraves – A Very Kacey Christmas and Aled Jones – One Voice At Christmas". Belfast Telegraph . Independent News & Media . Retrieved December 25, 2016.
  16. ↑ Smyth, David (December 16, 2016). "Kacey Musgraves – A Very Kacey Christmas review: 'traditional, with a cheeky twist'". Evening Standard . Archived from the original on December 16, 2016. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
  17. ↑ Hunter-Tilney, Ludovic (December 22, 2016). "Kacey Musgraves: A Very Kacey Christmas — review" . Financial Times . The Nikkei . Retrieved December 22, 2016.
  18. ↑ Lewis, Randy (December 13, 2016). "Holiday album roundup 2016: Garth, R. Kelly, Neil Diamond and more". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved September 10, 2018.
  19. 1 2 Hogan, Marc (December 23, 2016). "Kacey Musgraves: A Very Kacey Christmas". Pitchfork . Retrieved December 25, 2016.
  20. ↑ Garner, George (February 2017). "Kacey Musgraves: A Very Kacey Christmas". Q (368): 115.
  21. ↑ Christgau, Robert (December 9, 2016). "Country Livin' with Miranda Lambert, Margaret Glaspy, and More: Expert Witness with Robert Christgau". Noisey . Vice . Retrieved December 22, 2016.
  22. ↑ "A Very Kacey Christmas - Kacey Musgraves - Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic . All Media Network . Retrieved October 31, 2016.
  23. ↑ Bjorke, Matt (November 6, 2016). "Top 10 Country Albums Sales Chart: November 7, 2016". Roughstock. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
  24. ↑ "Billboard 200: The Week of December 17, 2016". Billboard . Prometheus Global Media . Retrieved December 6, 2016.
  25. ↑ Bjorke, Matt (January 3, 2017). "Top 10 Country Albums Sales Chart: January 3, 2017". Roughstock. Retrieved January 4, 2017.
  26. ↑ "Kacey Musgraves Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
  27. ↑ "Kacey Musgraves Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 13, 2016.
  28. ↑ "Kacey Musgraves Chart History (Holiday Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 13, 2016.
  29. ↑ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 2017". Billboard. Retrieved December 4, 2021.
  30. ↑ "Top Current Albums – Year-End 2017". Billboard. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
  31. ↑ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 2020". Billboard. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  32. ↑ "Kacey Musgraves: A Very Kacey Christmas: Music". ASIN   B01LSVGCHO . Retrieved September 12, 2016.
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