''A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector'' (originally released as ''A Christmas Gift for You from Philles Records'') is an

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...

Christmas songs 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 m ...

, produced by

Phil Spector Harvey Phillip Spector (born Harvey Philip Spector; December 26, 1939January 16, 2021) was an American record producer and songwriter, best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s, followed decades later by ...

, and originally released as Philles 4005 in 1963. Spector treated a series of mostly

secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin ''saeculum'', "worldly" or "of a generation"), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. Anything that does not have an explicit reference to religion, either negativ ...

Christmas standards to his "

Wall of Sound The Wall of Sound (also called the Spector Sound) is a music production formula developed by American record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios, in the 1960s, with assistance from engineer Larry Levine and the conglomerate of session ...

" treatment, and the selections feature the vocal performances of Spector's regular artists during this period. The album peaked at No. 13 on '' Billboard'' magazine's special, year-end, weekly Christmas Albums sales chart in December 1963. In 2003, the album was voted No. 142 on ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' magazine's list of

the 500 greatest albums of all time "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a recurring opinion survey and music ranking of the finest albums in history, compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and indust ...

, maintaining the rating in a 2012 revised list. In 2017, it was ranked the 130th greatest album of the 1960s by ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to ...

''. In 2019, it was ranked the greatest Christmas album of all time by ''Rolling Stone''. Brian Wilson of

the Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American rock band that formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Distinguished by the ...

has cited this album as his favorite of all time. The album was included in Robert Dimery's ''

1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die ''1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'' is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the ''1001 Before You Die'' series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music critics ...

''.

Recording and production

The album was recorded during September and October 1963. Brian Wilson of

attempted to contribute his piano playing to "

Santa Claus Is Coming to Town "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" is a Christmas song featuring Santa Claus written by J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie. The earliest known recorded version of the song was by banjoist Harry Reser and his band on October 24, 1934. It was then ...

", but was rejected because of his low performing ability. Cher, on the 4/20/2021 episode of

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert ''The Late Show with Stephen Colbert'' is an American late-night news and liberal political satire talk show hosted by Stephen Colbert, which premiered on September 8, 2015. Produced by Spartina Productions and CBS Studios, it is the second ...

, talked about attending the recording sessions with her then-boyfriend,

Sonny Bono Salvatore Phillip "Sonny" Bono (; February 16, 1935 – January 5, 1998) was an American singer, actor, and politician who came to fame in partnership with his second wife Cher as the popular singing duo Sonny & Cher. A member of the Republica ...

. Phil Spector had her sing background vocals for the entire Christmas album. Also, when

Darlene Love Darlene Wright (born July 26, 1941), known professionally as Darlene Love, is an American singer and actress. She was the lead singer of the girl group the Blossoms and she also recorded as a solo artist. She began singing as a child with her ...

didn't show up for the session, Spector had her record background vocals for "

You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin is a song by Phil Spector, Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, first recorded in 1964 by the American vocal duo the Righteous Brothers, whose version was also produced by Spector and is cited by some music critics as the ...

" by

The Righteous Brothers The Righteous Brothers are an American musical duo originally formed by Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield but now comprising Medley and Bucky Heard. Medley formed the group with Hatfield in 1963. They had first performed together in 1962 in the Lo ...

Release history

The album has been released several times on different labels: the original release on Philles and the 1972 reissue on Apple were followed by additional reissues on Warner-Spector (1974; this was the first release to feature a stereo mix of the songs, although it ironically used the "Back to Mono" Apple cover), Pavilion–a short-lived imprint of CBS (1981, also in stereo, using the Apple artwork, but with the "Back to Mono" button airbrushed out), Impression (1983), Passport (1984), and

Rhino A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species o ...

(1987). The first CD issue was also on Rhino in 1987, co-credited to

Phil Spector International Phil Spector International was a record label operated between 1970 and 1980 by Malcolm Jones. It served as a reissue label for the catalogue of Phil Spector's Philles Records. Among its reissues was a six volume set called "Phil Spector Wall O ...

RNCD 70235, it was mastered by Bill Inglot and Ken Perry and it restored the album's original

mono Mono may refer to: Common meanings * Infectious mononucleosis, "the kissing disease" * Monaural, monophonic sound reproduction, often shortened to mono * Mono-, a numerical prefix representing anything single Music Performers * Mono (Japanese b ...

mix. The second CD issue was in 1987 as well, on Chrysalis (CCD 1625) in monophonic for the UK market. This one is co-credited "Spector Records International" and features the slightly different international artwork, it features the same mastering as the Rhino CD. The more common third CD issue came in 1989, a remastered release on

ABKCO ABKCO Music & Records, Inc. (Allen & Betty Klein Company) is a major American independent record label, music publisher, and film and video production company. It owns and/or administers the rights to music by Sam Cooke, the Rolling Stones, the A ...

which restored the original title, artwork, and mono mix, this edition was remastered by Phil Spector and Larry Levine. The album also appeared as the fourth disc of ABKCO's 1991 Spector box set, ''

Back to Mono The human back, also called the dorsum, is the large posterior area of the human body, rising from the top of the buttocks to the back of the neck. It is the surface of the body opposite from the chest and the abdomen. The vertebral column r ...

'', and as the second disc of the 2006 UK-only ABKCO compilation ''The Phil Spector Collection''.

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainme ...

took over distribution rights to the Philles Records catalog in 2009 and re-released the mono album, remastered by Bob Ludwig, on its Legacy Recordings imprint on October 27 of that year. (The

Sundazed Sundazed Music is an American independent record label based in Coxsackie, New York. It specializes in obscure and rare recordings from the 1950s to the 1970s. In 2000, Sundazed had a staff of 15 and two mixing studios, including a vintage audio ...

label also reissued the album on vinyl in 2009.) In 2012, Legacy Recordings released a two-disc set in the UK only, containing a new remastering of the mono album by Vic Anesini on the first disc and a selection of non-Christmas Spector hits and rarities on the second disc.

Reception

The album, released in the United States on November 22, 1963—the same day that President

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...

was assassinated—was a relative failure at the time. Original pressings are scarce and collectable, now selling for $400–$500 in excellent condition. In subsequent years, especially after its reissue on Apple, the album grew in popularity and is considered now to be a holiday classic. Several of its tracks became iconic Christmas songs for generations, such as the original single "

Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" is a pop song originally sung by Darlene Love and included on the 1963 seasonal compilation album, ''A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector''. The song was written by Ellie Greenwich, Jeff Barry, and Phil S ...

," and the well-known "Ring-a-ling-a-ling Ding-dong-ding" background vocals in the Ronettes' "

Sleigh Ride "Sleigh Ride" is a light orchestra standard composed by Leroy Anderson. The composer had formed the original idea for the piece during a heat wave in July 1946, and he finished the work in February 1948. The original recordings were instrument ...

". The arrangement of Bruce Springsteen's version of "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" is based in part on

the Crystals The Crystals are an American vocal group that originated in New York City. Considered one of the defining acts of the girl group era in the first half of the 1960s, their 1961–1964 chart hits – including "There's No Other (Like My Baby)", " ...

' version of the song, and U2's late-1980s remake of "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" that appeared on the first '' A Very Special Christmas'' album is patterned after the

original that appeared on the Spector LP. The Ronettes' versions of "Frosty The Snowman" and "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" also usually get some radio airplay during the holiday season.

Commercial performance

The album was reissued by

Apple Records Apple Records is a record label founded by the Beatles in 1968 as a division of Apple Corps Ltd. It was initially intended as a creative outlet for the Beatles, both as a group and individually, plus a selection of other artists including Ma ...

in 1972, with different cover art—a photograph of Spector dressed as a heavily bearded Santa Claus, wearing a "Back to Mono" button—and retitled ''Phil Spector's Christmas Album''. This version of the album went to No. 6 on ''Billboards special Christmas Albums sales chart in December of that year, which was its highest chart ranking. In 1972, the album made its debut on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...

; it would re-chart in 1983, peaking at No. 19. On the week ending December 15, 2018, ''A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector'' entered the main ''Billboard'' 200 albums chart for the first time (at position No. 48), eventually peaking at No. 12 three weeks later. At the same time, the Ronettes' recording of "

", though never released as a single, charted on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for the first time, initially reaching as high as No. 26 on the week ending January 5, 2019; it then re-charted during the 2019 and 2020 holiday seasons and attained an overall peak position of No. 13 on the week ending January 2, 2021, before rising to No. 10 during the following holiday season. The album itself returned to No. 12 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart on the week ending January 2, 2021, and rose to a new peak position of No. 10 one year later on the chart dated January 8, 2022.

Track listing

''Recorded at Gold Star recording studio''

Personnel

;Session musicians ; Production * Mastering (1987 CDs) –

Bill Inglot Bill Inglot is an American music engineer and producer, best known for remastering older recordings to high quality digital standards. Inglot worked for Rhino Entertainment and other Warner Music Group labels from 1982 to 2007. He was largely ...

, Ken Perry at K-Disc Mastering * Remastering (1989) – Phil Spector, Larry Levine * Remastering (2009) – Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering * Remastering (2012) – Vic Anesini

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector 1963 Christmas albums Christmas albums by American artists Albums produced by Phil Spector Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Christmas compilation albums 1963 compilation albums Philles Records compilation albums Covers albums Albums arranged by Jack Nitzsche Albums recorded at Gold Star Studios Pop Christmas albums Rock Christmas albums Rhythm and blues Christmas albums