Christmas in the Heart

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Christmas in the Heart
A painting of a man and woman in a sleigh pulled by two horses over snow
Studio album by Bob Dylan
Released October 13, 2009 (2009-10-13)
Recorded 2009, Santa Monica, California, United States
Genre Christmas music
Length 42:21
Language English
Label Columbia
Producer Jack Frost (Bob Dylan's pseudonym)
Bob Dylan chronology
Together Through Life
(2009)Together Through Life2009		 Christmas in the Heart
(2009)		 The Bootleg Series Vol. 9: The Witmark Demos: 1962–1964
(2010)The Bootleg Series Vol. 9: The Witmark Demos: 1962–19642010

Christmas in the Heart is the thirty-fourth studio album and first Christmas album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on October 13, 2009 by Columbia Records. The album comprises a collection of hymns, carols, and popular Christmas songs. All Dylan's royalties from the sale of this album benefited the charities Feeding America in the USA, Crisis in the UK, and the World Food Programme.[1]

Dylan said that, although Jewish, he never felt left out of Christmas during his childhood in Minnesota. Regarding the popularity of Christmas music, he said, "... it's so worldwide and everybody can relate to it in their own way."[2]

The album opened at #1 on Billboard's Holiday and Billboard's Folk Album Chart, #10 on Rock Album charts and #23 on overall album charts.

Recording

In an interview published by Street News Service, journalist Bill Flanagan asked Dylan why he had performed the songs in a straightforward style, and Dylan responded: "There wasn’t any other way to play it. These songs are part of my life, just like folk songs. You have to play them straight too." When Flanagan reported that some critics thought the album was an ironic treatment of Christmas songs, Dylan responded: "Critics like that are on the outside looking in. They are definitely not fans or the audience that I play to. They would have no gut level understanding of me and my work, what I can and can't do—the scope of it all. Even at this point in time they still don’t know what to make of me."[3]

Tracks were recorded in a Santa Monica studio owned by Jackson Browne.

Release and promotion

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic 3/5 stars [4]
A.V. Club B−[5]
The Chicago Tribune 2/4 stars [6]
Robert Christgau (1-star Honorable Mention)[7]
Drowned In Sound 5/10[8]
The Guardian 4/5 stars [9]
Rolling Stone 3/5 stars[10]
Slant Magazine 4/5 stars [11]
Sputnikmusic 2.5/5 stars [12]
Uncut 2/5 stars [13]

Dylan released a music video for the song "Must Be Santa" directed by Nash Edgerton. In the video, Dylan and some other people are having a Christmas house party, until two of the guests start fighting and smashing things around and one of them running away. In the closing scene, we see Dylan and Santa Claus.[14] A music video was also released for the song "Little Drummer Boy".

A music video ecard[15] was also released for the song "Must Be Santa".

Reception

Its collective score at Metacritic stands at 62 out of 100 based on 17 reviews, indicating generally favorable reviews.[16] The unexpected move by Dylan to record a Christmas album was received with skepticism at first. The outcome of the project was lauded by critics for bringing a fresh breath of air into these classics. Slant Magazine's critic Jesse Cataldo said "This enjoyable sense of exploration, which prizes levity in a genre that usually amounts to an artistic wasteland, is invaluable. It also proves how much life is left in the songs, and how much other artists have succeeded at butchering them." Se7en magazine's critic agreed, writing "The arrangement of his band mixes up the style of the songs, resulting in a repertoire of Christmas songs that genuinely sound like modern material, while avoiding ever being cliché."[17][18][19]

Charity project

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It's a tragedy that more than 35 million people in this country alone—12 million of those children—often go to bed hungry and wake up each morning unsure of where their next meal is coming from. I join the good people of Feeding America in the hope that our efforts can bring some food security to people in need during this holiday season.

Bob Dylan [20]

Feeding America will receive Dylan's royalties from sales in the USA, while two further charities, the United Nations' World Food Programme and Crisis in the UK, will receive royalties from overseas sales. Dylan said: "That the problem of hunger is ultimately solvable means we must each do what we can to help feed those who are suffering and support efforts to find long-term solutions. I'm honoured to partner with the World Food Programme and Crisis in their fight against hunger and homelessness."[21]

Track listing

No. Title Writer(s) Length
1. "Here Comes Santa Claus"   Gene Autry, Oakley Haldeman 2:35
2. "Do You Hear What I Hear?"   Noël Regney, Gloria Shayne Baker 3:02
3. "Winter Wonderland"   Felix Bernard, Richard B. Smith 1:52
4. "Hark the Herald Angels Sing"   Felix Mendelssohn (music), Charles Wesley (lyrics), arranged by Bob Dylan 2:30
5. "I'll Be Home for Christmas"   Buck Ram, Kim Gannon and Walter Kent 2:54
6. "The Little Drummer Boy"   Katherine K. Davis, Henry Onorati, Harry Simeone 2:52
7. "The Christmas Blues"   Sammy Cahn, David Jack Holt 2:54
8. "O' Come All Ye Faithful (Adeste Fideles)"   Traditional, arranged by Bob Dylan 2:48
9. "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"   Hugh Martin, Ralph Blane 4:06
10. "Must Be Santa"   William Fredericks, Hal Moore 2:48
11. "Silver Bells"   Jay Livingston, Ray Evans 2:35
12. "The First Noel"   Traditional, arranged by Bob Dylan 2:30
13. "Christmas Island"   Lyle Moraine 2:27
14. "The Christmas Song"   Mel Tormé, Bob Wells 3:56
15. "O Little Town of Bethlehem"   Traditional, arranged by Bob Dylan 2:17

Personnel

Additional musicians
  • Amanda Barrett, Bill Cantos, Randy Crenshaw, Abby DeWald, Nicole Eva Emery, Walt Harrah, Robert Joyce — choir
Technical personnel
  • Bob Dylan — producer
  • David Bianco — recording, mixing
  • Bill Lane — assistant engineering
  • David Spreng — additional engineering
  • Glen Suravech — assistant engineering
  • Rich Tosti, Ed Wong — studio support
Artwork
  • Olivia De Berandis — inside cover illustration
  • Ewin Fotheringham — back cover illustration
  • Leonard Freed/Magnum Photos — inside photo
  • Coco Shinomiya — design
  • VisualLanguage.com — front cover

Charts

Chart (2009) Peak
Austria Albums Chart[22] 44
Belgian (Flanders) Albums Chart[22] 22
Belgian (Wallony) Albums Chart 89
Canada Albums Chart 33
Denmark Albums Chart[22] 14
Dutch Albums Chart[22] 34
French Albums Chart[22] 119
Germany Albums Chart[22] 37
Norway Albums Chart[22] 5
Irish Albums Chart[22] 34
Italy Albums Chart[22] 27
Spain Albums Chart[22] 54
Sweden Albums Chart[22] 6
Switzerland Albums Chart[22] 80
UK Albums Chart[22] 40
US Billboard 200 Albums Chart[22] 23
US Billboard Holiday Albums Chart[22] 1
US Billboard Folk Albums Chart[23] 1
US Billboard Rock Albums Chart 9

References

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External links

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Bob Dylan brings Christmas cheer to those without homes, Reuters, November 26, 2009
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.[dead link]
  4. ↑ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Christmas in the Heart at AllMusic
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  22. ↑ 22.00 22.01 22.02 22.03 22.04 22.05 22.06 22.07 22.08 22.09 22.10 22.11 22.12 22.13 22.14 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Trust, Gary. Chart Beat Thursday: John Mayer, Folk Albums, David Guetta . Billboard. November 26, 2009. Retrieved December 6, 2009.
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