''(Red) Christmas EP'', stylised as ''(RED) Christmas EP'', is the first

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

(EP) by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band

The Killers The Killers are an American rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingd ...

. It was released digitally on November 29, 2011, by

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...

. The EP features the band's yearly Christmas singles from 2006 to 2011. Proceeds from the sales from the (Red) Christmas EP have been donated to the Product Red campaign, headed by

Bobby Shriver Robert Sargent Shriver III (born April 28, 1954) is an American activist, attorney, and journalist. He was a member of the Santa Monica City Council from 2004 to 2012, serving as mayor pro tem in 2006 and as mayor during part of 2010. A member ...

and U2 lead singer

Bono Paul David Hewson (born 10 May 1960), known by his stage name Bono (), is an Irish singer-songwriter, activist, and philanthropist. He is the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the rock band U2. Born and raised in Dublin, he attended M ...

Background

The Killers have become recognized for their work with the Product Red campaign, headed by

and

. Every year between 2006 and 2016, the band released a Christmas song in support of the campaign. Every single came out around December 1 (coinciding with

World AIDS Day World AIDS Day, designated on 1 December every year since 1988, is an international day dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection and mourning those who have died of the disease. The acquired immun ...

). As of the EP, they had released six Christmas-themed songs and music videos: "

A Great Big Sled "A Great Big Sled" is a song by Las Vegas-based rock band The Killers. It was recorded in mid-November 2006 with record producer Alan Moulder as a one-off track and the band's Christmas 2006 single. Moulder's wife Toni Halliday, the former lead vo ...

" (2006), "

Don't Shoot Me Santa "Don't Shoot Me Santa" is a song by Las Vegas-based rock band The Killers. The song was released , as a digital download. A portion of the proceeds from this song went to AIDS charities as part of the Product Red campaign, headed by Bono and Bob ...

" (2007), " Joseph, Better You Than Me" (2008), "

¡Happy Birthday Guadalupe! "¡Happy Birthday Guadalupe!" is a Christmas song by Las Vegas rock band The Killers featuring Wild Light and Mariachi El Bronx, released as a digital download on December 1, 2009. The song continues on with The Killers' tradition of releasing a ...

" (2009), " Boots" (2010), and "

The Cowboys' Christmas Ball "The Cowboys' Christmas Ball" is a country Christmas song recorded by Las Vegas rock band The Killers. The lyrics of the song were taken from the 1890 poem of the same name by William Lawrence Chittenden. John Lomax included the lyrics to this son ...

" (2011). On November 30, 2011, the band released the (Red) Christmas EP on iTunes which features the first six songs. All proceeds from the songs have been donated to Product Red campaign and the fight against AIDS in Africa. The EP also features guest appearances from

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

, Neil Tennant (

Pet Shop Boys The Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of primary vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 50 million records worldwide, and were listed as the most successful duo i ...

), Toni Halliday (Curve),

Wild Light Wild Light is an American four-piece indie rock band from New Hampshire, United States, composed of multi-instrumentalists/vocalists Tim Kile and Seth Pitman, guitarist/vocalist Jordan Alexander, and drummer Seth Kasper. The band formed in 2005 ...

, and

Mariachi El Bronx Mariachi (, , ) is a genre of regional Mexican music that dates back to at least the 18th century, evolving over time in the countryside of various regions of western Mexico. The usual mariachi group today consists of as many as eight violins, t ...

Singles

The Killers' 2011 Christmas single, "

", was released as the lead single from the EP.

Commercial performance

The album debuted on the US ''Billboard'' 200 at number 85. It also opened on the ''Billboard'' Digital Albums chart at number 10, Rock Albums at number 11, and Alternative Albums at number nine.

Track listing

Notes * signifies an additional producer * signifies a co-producer

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Red Christmas Ep 2011 Christmas albums 2011 debut EPs Albums produced by Alan Moulder Albums produced by Flood (producer) Albums produced by Stuart Price Charity albums Christmas albums by American artists Christmas EPs Island Records EPs The Killers EPs Albums produced by Joe Chiccarelli