Christmas Album | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 23 November 1981 | |||
Recorded | 1978, 1981 | |||
Length | 44:11 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer | Frank Farian | |||
Boney M. chronology | ||||
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Singles from Christmas Album | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [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. In certain territories the album was given the alternate title Christmas with Boney M.
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" in 1981, which became a Top 20 hit in Germany. A second single released for Christmas 1982, "Zion's Daughter" (with new member Reggie Tsiboe pictured on the cover), failed to chart.
Side A
Side B
Chart (1981–1982) | Peak position |
---|---|
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [2] | 10 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [3] | 14 |
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [4] | 42 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA) [5] | Gold | 35,000^ |
Canada (Music Canada) [6] | 2× Platinum | 200,000^ |
Germany | — | ~200,000 [7] |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Nightflight to Venus is the third studio album by Euro-Caribbean group Boney M., and was released in June 1978. The album became a major success in continental Europe, Scandinavia, and Canada, topping most of the album charts during the second half of 1978 and also became their first UK number one album. In Canada, it received a nomination for a 1980 Juno Award in a category 'International Album of the Year'.
Take the Heat off Me is the debut album by Euro-Caribbean group Boney M. The album became a major seller in Europe, specifically in the Nordic countries, but in the U.S. the album just missed the album chart. Tracks include the hits "Daddy Cool", "Sunny" and the debut single "Baby Do You Wanna Bump".
Oceans of Fantasy is the fourth studio album by Euro-Caribbean group Boney M. Released in September 1979, Oceans of Fantasy became the second Boney M. album to top the UK charts and features the hits "El Lute / Gotta Go Home" and "I'm Born Again / Bahama Mama".
Love for Sale is the second studio album by Euro-Caribbean group Boney M. The album includes the hits "Ma Baker" and "Belfast". It also includes three covers: "Love for Sale", "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?", and "Still I'm Sad".
The Magic of Boney M. – 20 Golden Hits is a greatest hits album by Euro-Caribbean group Boney M., issued in 1980, which contained all their biggest hits up until that point, including non-album singles "Mary's Boy Child/Oh My Lord" and "Hooray! Hooray! It's a Holi-Holiday", album tracks from Take the Heat off Me, Love for Sale, Nightflight to Venus and Oceans of Fantasy as well as their most recent double A-side single release "I See a Boat On the River"/ "My Friend Jack".
Boonoonoonoos is the fifth studio album by Boney M..
Kalimba de Luna – 16 Happy Songs is a compilation album by Boney M. released in late 1984. On the strength of two carbon-copy cover versions, "Kalimba de Luna" and "Happy Song" which gave Boney M. their first Top 20 hits in Germany in three years, this compilation was rush-released in November 1984. Besides the 12" versions of the two singles, the latter marking Bobby Farrell's return to the band but neither featuring Liz Mitchell or Marcia Barrett, the compilation includes 3-minute edits of tracks from albums Boonoonoonoos and Ten Thousand Lightyears as well as non-album singles "Children Of Paradise"/"Gadda Da Vida" (1980), "Felicidad (Margherita)" (1981), "Going Back West" (1982) and "Jambo - Hakuna Matata " (1983), as well as a new remix of "Calendar Song" from the Oceans Of Fantasy album. Just like in the case of 1980 compilation The Magic Of Boney M. - 20 Golden Hits, many of these edits were to re-surface on a number of hits compilations in the future, the latest being 2007 Sony-BMG release Hit Collection.
The "Happy Song" single was originally released under the name 'Boney M. with Bobby Farrell & the School-Rebels' and this compilation as 'Boney M. with Bobby Farrell'.
The 20 Greatest Christmas Songs is a compilation/remix album by Boney M. In 1986 producer Frank Farian took the master tapes from 1981's Christmas Album, added six recordings by Liz Mitchell, Reggie Tsiboe and two session singers from 1984, remixed them and created Die 20 schönsten Weihnachtslieder der Welt, internationally released as The 20 Greatest Christmas Songs. The 1986 version of the Boney M. Christmas album has since been re-issued as The Most Beautiful Christmas Songs of the World (1992), A Wonderful Christmas Time (1998) and Christmas Party.
The Best of 10 Years – 32 Superhits also known as 32 Superhits - Non-Stop Digital Remix is a remix album by Boney M. released in 1986.
More Gold – 20 Super Hits Vol. II is a 1993 greatest hits album by Boney M. Producer Frank Farian issued More Gold - 20 Super Hits Vol. II containing the remainder of Boney M.'s best known songs – again most of them appearing in remixed or overdubbed form but credited as the original versions – as well as four new recordings featuring lead singer Liz Mitchell. Two singles were released from the album in Europe, "Ma Baker Remix '93" and "Papa Chico", the latter credited as "Boney M. featuring Liz Mitchell" and released in early 1994.
The Greatest Hits is a greatest hits album of recordings by Boney M. released by BMG in the United Kingdom in late 2001.
20th Century Hits is a remix album of recordings by Boney M. released by BMG in 1999. This remix project which was credited as 'Boney M. 2000' spun off a series of new single releases; "Ma Baker – Somebody Scream" in early 1999 and previously included on French compilation Ultimate, "Daddy Cool '99" featuring Mobi T., "Caribbean Night Fever / Hooray! Hooray! It's A Holi-Holiday" and "Sunny".
Eye Dance is the eighth and final studio album by the vocal group Boney M., released in 1985. The cover artwork was symbolic of the state the group was in at that time, as neither the famous "Boney M." logo nor the group members appeared on the cover, and were replaced by an anonymous drawing.
The Collection is a compilation album of recordings by Boney M. released by label BMG-Ariola in 1991.
The Collection was part of BMG's first mid-price CD campaign, the company released many Collections containing back-catalogue material by artists ranging from Modern Talking, Imagination and Amanda Lear to Chuck Berry, Glenn Miller and Elvis Presley.
The majority of the tracks on this release are taken from 1980 compilation The Magic of Boney M. - 20 Golden Hits, subsequently most of them appear in slightly edited form.
BMG-Ariola France has re-issued this compilation with new artwork as Cristal Collection in 1994 and as Sunny, Daddy Cool, Rivers Of Babylon and L'Essentiel, both in 2001.
The Complete Collection is a compilation album of recordings by Boney M. released by BMG/CMC Records in Denmark in late 2000.
Christmas with Boney M. a.k.a. (New) Christmas with Boney M. is an aborted second Christmas album turned into a compilation. The album was exclusively released in South Africa where the group's popularity—contrary to the rest of the world—remained high during the early 80s. The album is a sought-after item for Boney M. collectors since it includes the original recording "Mother and Child Reunion" with Reggie Tsiboe and La Mama which was remixed and overdubbed with additional vocals for a 1985 charity single for Ethiopia, released by Frank Farian Corporation. The album has never been released on CD.
Christmas with Boney M. is a Christmas compilation by Boney M., released on 16 November 2007. It is a reissue of The 20 Greatest Christmas Songs with a reordered tracklist that restores the two songs from the original Christmas Album which were originally excluded, and a 2007 recording by the Daddy Cool Kids as a bonus track. This compilation follows the 2007 re-release of Boney M.'s original studio albums.
"Mary's Boy Child / Oh My Lord" is a 1978 Christmas single by Boney M., a cover of Harry Belafonte's 1956 hit "Mary's Boy Child", put in medley with the new song "Oh My Lord".
"I'm Born Again" / "Bahama Mama" is a double A-side single by German band Boney M. It was the second single from their fourth album Oceans of Fantasy (1979), not withcounting a promotional-only single release of "Let It All Be Music" and the album title track. Not as successful as previous singles, the ballad "I'm Born Again" peaked at #7 in Germany. In the UK, it stalled at No. 35 after 10 consecutive Top 20 singles. Over the ensuing years, Boney M. would employ the double A-side format, typically with the A1 song being the song intended for radio and the A2 song being more specifically targeted at discos. Typically, the sides on the coordinating 12" single would be reversed.
"I See a Boat on the River" / "My Friend Jack" is a double A-side single by German band Boney M., taken from their 1980 compilation album The Magic of Boney M. - 20 Golden Hits. "I See a Boat on the River" peaked at #5 in Germany but marked the group's waning popularity in the UK where "My Friend Jack" was promoted as the A-side, faring even worse than their former single "I'm Born Again", stalling at #57. Boney M. would use the double A-side format over the next years, typically with the A1 being the song intended for radio and A2 being more squarely aimed at discos. The sides would usually be switched on the accompanying 12" single.