''Someday at Christmas'' is the eighth studio album by
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...
, first released on November 27, 1967 by
Motown Records
Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmant ...
under its
Tamla
Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...
imprint. Produced by
Henry Cosby
Henry R. "Hank" Cosby (May 12, 1928 – January 22, 2002) was an American songwriter, arranger, producer and musician who worked for Motown Records from its formative years. Along with Sylvia Moy, Cosby was a key collaborator with Stevie Wonder ...
, it marked Wonder's first
Christmas album
Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music regularly performed or heard around the Christmas season. Music associated with Christmas may be purely instrumental, or, in the case of carols or songs, may employ lyrics whose subject ma ...
. ''Someday at Christmas'' consists of twelve tracks, featuring four cover versions of
Christmas standards and
carols, as well as eight original songs, chiefly penned by
Ron Miller along with his wife Aurora as well as Bryan and Deborah Wells, including
its title track and "
What Christmas Means to Me "What Christmas Means to Me" is the name of several different Christmas music, Christmas songs. The most-covered version was written by Allen Story, Anna Gordy Gaye, and George Gordy. It has been recorded by many artists, including:
* Stevie Wonde ...
". "Twinkle Twinkle Little Me" had been included two years earlier on
The Supremes
The Supremes were an American girl group and a premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Founded as the Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successful ...
' Christmas album ''
Merry Christmas
The Christmas season or the festive season (also known in some countries as the holiday season or the holidays) is an annually recurring period recognized in many Western and other countries that is generally considered to run from late November ...
''.
Upon its original release, ''Someday at Christmas'' failed to chart in the United States, although it peaked at number 50 on the
Swedish Albums Chart
Sverigetopplistan (, lit. "the Sweden top list") is the Swedish national record chart, formerly known as Topplistan (1975–1997) and Hitlistan (1998–2007) and known by its current name since October 2007, based on sales data from the Swedish R ...
. It has since been reissued several times, most recently in 2003 as part of
Universal Music
Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, Dutch law. UMG's cor ...
's Christmas edition of their successful ''20th Century Masters'' series, including additional tracks. In 2020, it peaked at number 28 on the US
Top Holiday Albums
The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, pr ...
. The title track "Someday at Christmas" was previously released as a single in 1966 and reached number 24 on ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
s Christmas Singles chart that year.
Critical reception
In his retrospective review for
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
, editor Rovi Staff wrote that "with ''Someday at Christmas'', Stevie Wonder applies his inimitable vocal technique to yuletide songs, some familiar, some not, with predictably successful results. In the title song he yearns for a Christmas when "Men won't be boys/playing with bombs like kids play with toys," striking a plaintive tone not usually found on Christmas albums. Although he is hopeful that the day will come, he sings that it may not happen any time soon. The song seems eerily prescient in light of the chaotic year that would follow Christmas 1967, when this record was released."
Track listing
All tracks produced by
Henry Cosby
Henry R. "Hank" Cosby (May 12, 1928 – January 22, 2002) was an American songwriter, arranger, producer and musician who worked for Motown Records from its formative years. Along with Sylvia Moy, Cosby was a key collaborator with Stevie Wonder ...
.
20th Century Masters (2003)
Personnel
Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.
Performers and musicians
*
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...
– vocals, harmonica, keyboards, piano, drums
*
The Funk Brothers
The Funk Brothers were a group of Detroit-based session musicians who performed the backing to most Motown recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles in 1972.
Its members are considered among the most successful groups of stud ...
– instrumentation
*
The Andantes
The Andantes were an American female session group for the Motown record label during the 1960s. Composed of Jackie Hicks, Marlene Barrow, and Louvain Demps, the group sang background vocals on numerous Motown recordings, including songs by Mar ...
– backing vocals
*
The Originals – backing vocals
Charts
References
{{Authority control
Stevie Wonder albums
1967 Christmas albums
Christmas albums by American artists
Tamla Records albums
Albums produced by Henry Cosby
Rhythm and blues Christmas albums
Albums recorded at Hitsville U.S.A.