Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1960 | |||
Recorded | July 15 – August 5, 1960 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 34:00 (original 1960 release) 52:14 (2002 CD release) | |||
Label | Verve | |||
Producer | Norman Granz | |||
Ella Fitzgerald chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [2] |
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings | [3] |
Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas is a 1960 album by the American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, recorded in the summer of 1960, with a studio orchestra arranged and conducted by Frank DeVol. The tracks are all secular Christmas seasonal songs, in contrast to her second Christmas album released in 1967.
It is Fitzgerald's only Verve complete album of Christmas tunes. Verve had issued a 7" 45rpm single in 1959, featuring "The Christmas Song" with "The Secret of Christmas" on the B-side; both were recorded with Russ Garcia and His Orchestra in September 1959. The album has been reissued several times and there have been variations to the sleeve's artwork.
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Jingle Bells" | J.S. Pierpont | 2:21 |
2. | "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" | 2:56 | |
3. | "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" | 2:56 | |
4. | "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" | Frank Loesser | 3:32 |
5. | "Sleigh Ride" | 2:56 | |
6. | "The Christmas Song" | 3:00 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
7. | "Good Morning Blues" | 3:15 | |
8. | "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" | 2:43 | |
9. | "Winter Wonderland" | 2:16 | |
10. | "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" | Johnny Marks | 2:51 |
11. | "Frosty the Snowman" |
| 2:12 |
12. | "White Christmas" | Irving Berlin | 3:02 |
Total length: | 34:00 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Notes | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
13. | "The Secret of Christmas" |
| Released in 1959, 7" single, B-side | 2:45 |
14. | "Medley: We Three Kings of Orient Are/O Little Town of Bethlehem" | John Henry Hopkins/ | Released in UK 1960, 7" single, A-side | 3:35 |
15. | "Christmas Island" | Lyle L. Moraine | Released in UK 1960, 7" single, B-side | 2:18 |
16. | "The Christmas Song" (alternate take) |
| 3:41 | |
17. | "White Christmas" (alternate take) | Irving Berlin | 3:44 | |
18. | "Frosty the Snowman" (alternate take) |
| 2:11 | |
Total length: | 52:14 |
Recorded July 15–16, August 5, 1960, New York, New York:
Track 13 recorded September 3, 1959, United Records, Hollywood:
Chart (2019–2024) | Peak position |
---|---|
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [4] | 45 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [5] | 55 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [6] | 111 |
Canadian Albums (Billboard) [7] | 54 |
Danish Albums (Hitlisten) [8] | 24 |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [9] | 37 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [10] | 47 |
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ) [11] | 38 |
Irish Albums (IRMA) [12] | 93 |
Lithuanian Albums (AGATA) [13] | 33 |
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [14] | 33 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [15] | 33 |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [16] | 29 |
UK Albums (OCC) [17] | 68 |
US Billboard 200 [18] | 88 |
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