One Wish: The Holiday Album

One Wish: The Holiday Album
File:Whitney Houston - One Wish-The Holiday Album.jpg
Studio album by Whitney Houston
Released	November 18, 2003
Recorded	1996, 2002–2003
Genre	Christmas, R&B, pop, holiday, gospel, soul
Label	Arista
Producer	Whitney Houston, Mervyn Warren, Troy Taylor, Gordon Chambers, Barry Eastmond
Whitney Houston chronology
Just Whitney... (2002)Just Whitney...2002 One Wish: The Holiday Album (2003) The Ultimate Collection (2007)The Ultimate Collection2007

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
Los Angeles Times
The New York Times	Positive
Rolling Stone	(unfavorable)
Slant

One Wish: The Holiday Album is the sixth studio album by American singer Whitney Houston, released in November 2003. The album is a Christmas album, and featured the single "One Wish (for Christmas)", which reached the top twenty on Billboard's U.S. Adult Contemporary chart. The album spent six weeks on the Billboard 200 and as of January 2013 it had sold over 546,000 copies to date. The album also features a duet with Houston's daughter Bobbi Kristina on "The Little Drummer Boy." The album also re-uses "Joy to the World" and "Who Would Imagine a King" from 1996's The Preacher's Wife: Original Soundtrack Album.

Critical reception

Moscow-Pullman Daily News wrote that Houston's "voice [...] dazzles on [the album] [...] as she soulfully interprets holiday classics[.] Her voice - though at times a bit raspy - captivates on every track [.]" The New York Times noted the "lavish swoops, the sultry whispers, the gospelly asides and the meteoric crescendos" from Houston.

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"The First Noel"	Traditional	Troy Taylor	3:14
2.	"The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)"	Mel Tormé, Robert Wells	Troy Taylor	3:12
3.	"Little Drummer Boy" (featuring Bobbi Kristina Brown)	Katherine Davis, Henry Onorati, Harry Simeone	Mervyn Warren	4:29
4.	"One Wish (For Christmas)"	Gordon Chambers, Barry Eastmond, Freddie Jackson	Gordon Chambers, Barry Eastmond	4:12
5.	"Cantique de Nöel (O Holy Night)"	Traditional	Mervyn Warren	3:48
6.	"I'll Be Home for Christmas"	Kim Gannon, Walter Kent, Buck Ram	Mervyn Warren	3:45
7.	"Deck the Halls/Silent Night"	Traditional	Mervyn Warren	4:29
8.	"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"	Ralph Blane, Hugh Martin	Mervyn Warren	4:49
9.	"O come, O come, Emmanuel"	Traditional	Mervyn Warren	3:06
10.	"Who Would Imagine a King" (featuring The Nativity Choir)	Mervyn Warren, Hallerin Hilton Hill	Mervyn Warren, Whitney Houston	3:30
11.	"Joy to the World" (with The Georgia Mass Choir)	Traditional	Mervyn Warren, Whitney Houston	4:41
Total length:				43:15

Credits and personnel

Production

• Producers: Mervyn Warren, Gordon Chambers, Barry Eastmond, Whitney Houston, Troy Taylor
• Engineer: Barry Eastmond, Tom "TK" Kidd, Joseph Magee, Tony Shepperd, Michael White, Frank Wolf
• Mixing: Ray Bardani, Dave Reitzas, Tony Shepperd
• Mastering: David Kutch
• A&R: Joey Arbagey, Michelle George, Matthew Schwartz
• Assistants: Steve Fisher, John Holmes, Jason Locklin, Nick Marshall, Roger Moody, Jeff Moses, Jack Odom, Zack Odom, Alex Reverberi, Marnie Riley, Anthony Ruotolo, Rob Skipworth, Matt Snedecor, Craig "Niteman" Taylor
• Production coordination: Ivy Skoff
• String engineer: Phil Magnotti
• Vocal contractor: Sally Stevens
• Programming: Troy Taylor

• Drum programming: Scott Frankfurt, Mervyn Warren
• Percussion programming: Scott Frankfurt, Mervyn Warren
• Arrangers: Mervyn Warren, Troy Taylor
• Choir arrangements: Mervyn Warren
• String arrangements: Mervyn Warren, Barry Eastmond
• Vocal arrangements: Mervyn Warren, Gordon Chambers, Whitney Houston, Ezekiel Lewis, Troy Taylor
• Creative director: Joe-Mama Nitzberg
• Art direction: Richard Thomas Jennings
• Design: Richard Thomas Jennings
• Photography: Sante d'Orazio
• Make-up: Roxanna Floy
• Stylist: Timothy Snell
• Hair stylist: Ellin La Var

Personnel

• Whitney Houston – vocals, vocal arrangement
• Julien Barber – viola
• Sandra Billingslea – violin
• Edie Lehmann Boddicker – background vocals
• Joseph Bongiorno – upright bass
• Alfred Brown – viola
• Carmen Carter – background vocals
• Gordon Chambers – background vocals
• Bernard Davis – drums
• John R. Dexter – viola
• Earl Dumler – oboe
• Barry Eastmond – conductor, keyboard
• Max Ellen – violin
• Ian Freebairn-Smith – background vocals
• Roger Freeland – background vocals
• Sharlotte Gibson – background vocals
• Sandi Hall – background vocals
• Phil Hamilton – acoustic guitar, electric guitar
• Reggie Hamilton – bass
• Ashley Horne – violin
• Gary Houston – background vocals
• Regis Iandiorio – violin
• Paul Jackson Jr. – guitar
• Ronald Jenkins – bass
• Bashiri Johnson – percussion
• Olivia Koppell – viola
• Gail Kruvand – upright bass

• Leonid Levin – violin
• Jesse Levy – cello
• Ezekiel Lewis – background vocals
• Stephen Mackey – background vocals
• Margaret Magill – violin
• Myrna Matthews – background vocals
• Kermit Moore – cello
• Michael Morton – flute
• Eugene J. Moye – cello
• Dean Parks – guitar
• Carol Pool – violin
• Maxine Roach – viola
• Andy Stein – violin
• Katherine LiVolsi Stern – violin
• Sally Stevens – background vocals
• Marti Sweet – violin
• Gerald Tarack – violin, concert master
• Troy Taylor – bass, drums, keyboard, background vocals
• Shelene Thomas – background vocals
• Carmen Twillie – background vocals
• Mervyn Warren – percussion, piano, conductor, keyboard, electric piano, vocals, background vocals
• Oren Waters – background vocals
• John West – background vocals
• Gerald White – background vocals
• Belinda Whitney – violin
• Harry Zaratzian – viola

Charts

Chart (2003/2012)	Peak position
US Billboard 200	49
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)	14
US Top Holiday Albums (Billboard)	5

References

External links

• One Wish: The Holiday Album at Allmusic
• One Wish: The Holiday Album at Discogs