''A Pentatonix Christmas'' is the fifth
studio album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
by American
a cappella
''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Ren ...
group
Pentatonix
Pentatonix (abbreviated PTX) is an American a cappella group from Arlington, Texas, currently consisting of vocalists Mitch Grassi, Scott Hoying, Kirstin Maldonado, Kevin Olusola, and Matt Sallee. Characterized by their pop-style arrangements ...
. It is also their second full-length holiday album since ''
That's Christmas to Me
''That's Christmas to Me'' is the third studio album by a cappella group Pentatonix. It is their sixth release overall and their second holiday release following their 2012 EP ''PTXmas''. It only features previously unreleased material (except " Le ...
'' in 2014. Featuring two new original songs, "Good to Be Bad" and "The Christmas Sing-Along",
''A Pentatonix Christmas'' debuted on the
''Billboard'' 200 at number three with 52,000 albums sold in its first week,
and later peaked at number one, selling 206,000 units in its best week.
''A Pentatonix Christmas'' marks as their second number one album on the ''Billboard'' 200 after ''
Pentatonix
Pentatonix (abbreviated PTX) is an American a cappella group from Arlington, Texas, currently consisting of vocalists Mitch Grassi, Scott Hoying, Kirstin Maldonado, Kevin Olusola, and Matt Sallee. Characterized by their pop-style arrangements ...
''.
The album also debuted atop the ''Billboard'' Holiday Albums chart, their second number one on that chart after ''That's Christmas to Me''.
The deluxe edition of the album dropped from number 6 to 200 on the ''Billboard'' 200 in 2018, the greatest drop for an album that still remained on the chart, in Billboard history. The album also, with a guest appearance by The Manhattan Transfer, marked the first recording by the fourth iteration of the group, as this was Trist Curless' first participation with the group in a recording since the death of
Tim Hauser
Timothy DuPron Hauser (December 12, 1941 – October 16, 2014) was a singer and founding member of the vocal group The Manhattan Transfer. He won 10 Grammy Awards as a member of The Manhattan Transfer.
Early life
Hauser was born in Troy, New Y ...
, whom Curless officially replaced in 2014.
As of November 2017, 938,000 units of ''A Pentatonix Christmas'' have been sold in the US
and 1,400,000 units worldwide. A deluxe edition was released on October 20, 2017, almost a year after the original's release. The deluxe edition additionally marks the first appearance of replacement bass Matt Sallee and the second to last appearance of Avi Kaplan.
Track listing
Personnel
Credits adapted from AllMusic.
Pentatonix
*
Scott Hoying
Scott Richard Hoying (born September 17, 1991)Nguyen, Mindy (December 19, 2016A Pentatonix Christmas (Music Review)The Lion's Roar is an American singer, musician and songwriter who came to international attention as the baritone of the a cappell ...
–
baritone
A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...
lead
Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...
,
backing vocals
A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...
, co-
vocal bass on "Hallelujah”
*
Mitch Grassi
Mitchell Coby Michael Grassi (born July 24, 1992) is an American singer, musician and songwriter from Arlington, Texas. Known for his high tenor voice, Grassi came to international attention as the founder and performer of two groups—the quint ...
–
tenor
A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...
lead and backing vocals
*
Kirstin Maldonado
Kirstin Taylor Maldonado (born May 16, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. She is best known as the mezzo-soprano of the a cappella group Pentatonix. With the group, she has released seven studio albums, won three Grammy Awards ...
–
alto
The musical term alto, meaning "high" in Italian (Latin: ''altus''), historically refers to the contrapuntal part higher than the tenor and its associated vocal range. In 4-part voice leading alto is the second-highest part, sung in choruses by ...
lead and backing vocals
*
Avi Kaplan
Avriel Benjamin Kaplan (born April 17, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for his basso profondo range and for his tenure as the vocal bass of the a cappella group Pentatonix from 2011 to 2017. As a part of the group, he rele ...
– vocal bass,
bass lead and backing vocals
*
Kevin "K.O." Olusola – vocal percussion,
beatboxing
Beatboxing (also beat boxing) is a form of vocal percussion primarily involving the art of mimicking drum machines (typically a TR-808), using one's mouth, lips, tongue, and voice. , tenor backing vocals, vocal
flugelhorn
The flugelhorn (), also spelled fluegelhorn, flugel horn, or flügelhorn, is a brass instrument that resembles the trumpet and cornet but has a wider, more conical bore. Like trumpets and cornets, most flugelhorns are pitched in B, though some ...
on "Good To Be Bad", lead vocals on "Away in a Manger"
Additional personnel
*
The Manhattan Transfer
The Manhattan Transfer is a Grammy award–winning vocal group founded in 1969 that has explored a cappella, vocalese, swing, standards, Brazilian jazz, rhythm and blues, and pop music.
There have been two editions of the Manhattan Transfer, ...
– choir/chorus
* Kala Batch – choir/chorus
* Ed Boyer – mixing
* Ben Bram – arranger, engineer, production
*
Jacob Collier
Jacob Collier (; né Moriarty; born 2 August 1994) is an English singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. His music incorporates a combination of jazz with elements from many other musical genres, and often features extensive use of reha ...
– contractor, arranger
* Jessi Collins – choir/chorus
* Tim Davis – contractor, engineer
* Luke Edgemon – choir/chorus
* Anthony Evans – choir/chorus
* Alex Green – production
* Missi Hale – choir/chorus
*
Bill Hare
Bill Hare is an American Grammy Award-winning audio engineer known for pioneering contemporary recording techniques in a cappella. He was the first to record voices individually, and the first to mic singers exactly as one would mic instrument ...
– mastering
* Andrew Kesler – production
* Keri Larson – choir/chorus
* David Laucks – choir/chorus
* Shang-Po Lin – engineering
* Toby Lin – engineering assistance
* Keith Noftary – A&R
* Tiffany Palmer – choir/chorus
* Brandon Winbush – choir/chorus
* Mick Wordley – engineering
Deluxe edition
* Matt Sallee - vocal bass, bass backing vocals
* Reno Selmser - vocal bass, bass backing vocals (on "Let It Snow")
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Decade-end charts
Certifications
See also
*
List of ''Billboard'' Top Holiday Albums number ones of the 2010s
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pentatonix Christmas, A
2016 Christmas albums
Pentatonix albums
A cappella Christmas albums
Christmas albums by American artists
RCA Records Christmas albums