| Holiday | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 21, 2014 | |||
| Studio |
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| Genre | Holiday, R&B | |||
| Length | 47:22 | |||
| Label | Legacy | |||
| Producer | Philip Bailey, Myron McKinley | |||
| Earth, Wind & Fire chronology | ||||
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Holiday is the twenty-first studio and the first Christmas album by the American band Earth, Wind & Fire, released in October 2014 by Sony/Legacy. [1] The album reached No. 26 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums and No. 8 on the Billboard Holiday Albums charts. [2] [3]
According to longtime band member Verdine White, "We never thought about doing a holiday album before, but Legacy/Sony asked and so have our fans, so we hope the audience likes it." [4]
Along with a number of traditional Christmas songs, Holiday includes two Earth, Wind & Fire songs that were reworked just for this release:
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [5] |
| LA Times | [6] |
| Boston Globe | (favourable) [7] |
| Exclaim! | (8/10) [8] |
| OffBeat | (favourable) [9] |
| New York Times | (mixed) [10] |
| Atlanta Journal-Constitution | (B-) [11] |
| The Times | (favourable) [12] |
| Blues & Soul | (6/10) [13] |
| Record Collector | [14] |
Randy Lewis of the Los Angeles Times gave the album a 3 out of five stars rating and wrote "The venerable R&B band does what it does best here: lays on the hard and heavy funk with fat horn accents and thick rhythmic riffs to propel a batch of time-tested holiday favorites." [6] With an 8 out of 10 rating Matt Bauer of Exclaim! stated "Holiday is here, and it's anything but the uninspired, calculated cash grab that's become all too synonymous with yuletide offerings." [8] Sarah Rodman of The Boston Globe found that "on its first seasonal outing, the legendary R&B outfit brings the joy on a horn-flecked collection of familiar tunes". [7] Simon Redley of Blues & Soul gave a 6 out of 10 rating saying "I usually keep as far away from Christmas albums as turkey or geese should from a kitchen, during the last few weeks of the year! Schmaltzy old chestnuts re-done for the zillionth time, often about as sincere as an MP on your doorstep a few days before an election. So when asked to review this one, I emitted a loud sigh and prepared for an hour or so of tedium. But I actually enjoyed most of this album, and there are some real high spots. The treatment the songs were given means these sound nothing like we have heard them before too." [13] Brett Milano of OffBeat also proclaimed "If you need to funkify your holiday mix (and you’ve already got the Christmas EP that George Porter Jr. released in ’12), this will do fine." [9] With a B− grade Melissa Ruggieri of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution noted "From the opening notes of "Joy to the World," it's apparent that EWF's first-ever holiday album isn't going to stray too far from the legendary R&B-funk band's signature sound with blasts of brass and calls to keep clapping." [11] Daryl Easlea of Record Collector gave a 3 out of 5 stars rating describing the album as "Relentlessly upbeat, beautifully played and staying clear of too many sleigh bell-type clichés, it will provide a perennial alternative to more traditional fare." [14]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Joy to the World" | Isaac Watts | 4:12 |
| 2. | "Happy Seasons" | Verdine White, Philip Bailey, Larry Dunn, Maurice White, Al McKay | 3:58 |
| 3. | "O Come All Ye Faithfull" | John Francis Wade, John Reading | 6:06 |
| 4. | "Winter Wonderland" | Felix Bernard, Richard B. Smith | 3:40 |
| 5. | "What Child Is This?" | William Chatterton Dix | 3:34 |
| 6. | "Away in a Manger" | James Ramses Murray | 2:54 |
| 7. | "The Little Drummer Boy" | Katherine K. Davis | 2:50 |
| 8. | "Every Day Is Like Christmas" | Roxanne Seeman, Philipp Steinke | 3:26 |
| 9. | "The First Noël" | Traditional | 4:26 |
| 10. | "Sleigh Ride" | Leroy Anderson, Mitchell Parish | 2:56 |
| 11. | "Snow" | Traditional Japanese | 2:31 |
| 12. | "Jingle Bell Rock" | Joe Beal, Jim Boothe | 3:09 |
| 13. | "December" | Maurice White, McKay, Allee Willis | 3:40 |
| Total length: | 47:22 | ||
Earth, Wind & Fire are an American musical group. Their style and sound span various music genres such as jazz, R&B, soul, funk, disco, pop, Latin, and Afro-pop. They are among the best-selling music artists of all time, with sales of over 90 million records worldwide.
That's the Way of the World is the sixth studio album by American band Earth, Wind & Fire, released on March 3, 1975, by Columbia Records. It was also the soundtrack for a 1975 motion picture of the same name. The album rose to No. 1 on both the Billboard 200 and Top Soul Albums charts. That's the Way of the World has also been certified Triple Platinum in the U.S. by the RIAA. In 2002, the band released live version of the album, recorded in 1975 – That's the Way of the World: Alive in '75.
Raise! is the eleventh studio album by the American band Earth, Wind & Fire, released on November 14, 1981, by ARC/Columbia Records. The album spent 11 weeks atop the Billboard Top R&B albums chart and peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 chart. Raise! has been certified Platinum in the US by the RIAA, Gold in the UK by the BPI and Gold in Canada by Music Canada.
Gratitude is a double live album by American band Earth, Wind & Fire, issued in November 1975 by Columbia Records. The album spent six weeks atop the Billboard Top Soul Albums chart and three weeks atop the Billboard 200 chart. Gratitude has also been certified Triple Platinum in the US by the RIAA.
"Shining Star" is a song by Earth, Wind & Fire's album That's the Way of the World, issued as a single in January 1975 on Columbia Records. The song rose to No. 1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 chart and the Billboard Hot Soul Songs chart, becoming their first single to top both charts. It has also been certified Gold in the US by the RIAA.
Faces is the tenth studio album by the American band Earth, Wind & Fire released on October 14, 1980, on ARC/Columbia Records. The album reached number 10 on the Billboard Top LPs chart, number 2 on the Billboard Top Soul albums chart and number 10 on the UK Albums Chart. Faces was certified Gold in the US by the RIAA.
"September" is a song by the American band Earth, Wind & Fire released as a single in 1978 on ARC/Columbia Records. Initially included as a track for The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1, "September" was very successful commercially and reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot R&B Songs chart, No. 8 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart. The song remains a staple of the band's body of work and has been sampled, covered, remixed, and re-recorded numerous times.
Feel My Soul is the debut album by singer Jennifer Holliday, released in October 1983 on Geffen Records. The album reached No. 6 on the Billboard Top Soul Albums chart and No. 31 on the Top Albums chart. Feel My Soul was Grammy nominated within the category of Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female.
"Sing a Song" is a song recorded by R&B/funk band, Earth, Wind & Fire, which was issued as a single in November 1975 on Columbia Records. The song reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Soul Singles chart and No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Millennium is the sixteenth studio album by American band Earth, Wind & Fire released in September 1993 on Warner Bros. Records. The album reached No. 8 on the US Billboard Top R&B Albums chart, No. 39 on the US Billboard 200, No. 18 on the Japanese Pop Albums chart and No. 29 on the Dutch Album Top 100. Millennium has also been certified Gold in Japan by the RIAJ.
"That's the Way of the World" is a song recorded by the band Earth, Wind & Fire, released as a single in June 1975 on Columbia Records. The song reached No. 5 on the Billboard Hot Soul Singles chart and No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Reasons" is a love ballad by Earth, Wind & Fire from their sixth studio album, That's the Way of the World. The song features the falsetto singing on lead vocals of Philip Bailey.
Now, Then & Forever is the twentieth studio album by American band Earth, Wind & Fire, released on September 10, 2013, by Legacy Recordings/Sony Music. The album reached No. 11 on the US Billboard 200 and No. 6 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.
"Everyday Is Christmas" is a Christmas song by Jacky Cheung, written by Roxanne Seeman and Philipp Steinke. It was issued as a single from Cheung's Private Corner album released on January 29, 2010, by Universal Music. The song was ranked by Nokia's Ovi.com download service as the tenth most downloaded Christmas song in 2010.
The Greatest Hits is a compilation album by the band Earth, Wind & Fire issued in 2010 on Sony Music. The album reached No. 9 on the UK Albums and No. 29 on the Scottish Albums chart.
"Guiding Lights" is a song by the band Earth, Wind & Fire, released as a single in 2012 by Sony Music/Legacy. The song reached No. 16 on the Billboard Smooth Jazz Songs chart and No. 30 on the Billboard Adult R&B Songs chart.
The Classic Christmas Album is the twenty-second studio album and second Christmas album by the American band Earth, Wind & Fire, released in 2015 by Sony/Legacy. It is essentially a reissue of their previous album Holiday with five bonus tracks. The album reached No. 34 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart and No. 18 on the Billboard Top R&B Albums chart.
Love Will Find a Way is a jazz album by Philip Bailey released in November 2019 on Verve Records. The album reached No. 1 on both the Billboard Top Jazz Albums chart and the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Albums chart.
"My Promise" is a song by the band Earth, Wind & Fire, released as a single in 2013 by Sony Music/Legacy. The song reached No. 28 on the Billboard Adult R&B Songs chart and No. 30 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary Songs chart.
"Holidays" is a song by American singer-songwriter Meghan Trainor from her fourth major-label studio album and first Christmas album, A Very Trainor Christmas (2020), featuring musical group Earth, Wind & Fire. Trainor wrote the song with Philip Bailey, Eddie Benjamin, Verdine White, Ralph Johnson, and its producer, Mike Sabath. It became available as the album's fifth track on October 30, 2020, when it was released by Honest OG Recording and Epic Records. "Holidays" is influenced by several genres and incorporates trumpets, layered harmonies, and horn bleats in its production.
