James Taylor at Christmas is the second Christmas album by singer-songwriter James Taylor, released by Columbia Records in 2006. It was his last release for Columbia since signing with them in 1977.
The album is essentially a reissue (with a new title and slightly altered track listing) of James Taylor: A Christmas Album, a limited edition title distributed by Hallmark Cards in 2004. “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”, originally issued on Taylor’s October Road in 2002, and “River” were not included on the original Hallmark release. Additionally, the original album featured a version of “Deck the Halls” which is not on the standard Columbia CD. (The Barnes & Noble chain, however, issued a version of the new title with “Deck the Halls” included as a bonus track.)
The album was reissued on the UMe label in 2012, with the addition of two tracks. One of them, “Mon Beau Sapin” (a French translation of “O Christmas Tree”), is a new recording and is only available on this album. The other track new to the collection is a version of George Harrison’s “Here Comes the Sun” by Taylor and cellist Yo-Yo Ma, which originally appeared on Ma’s 2008 holiday album Songs of Joy & Peace.
The album was nominated for Best Traditional Pop Album at the 50th Grammy Awards.
Tracks
1 Winter Wonderland (Felix Bernard, Richard B. Smith) 3:34
2 Go Tell It on the Mountain (Traditional) 3:42
3 Santa Claus Is Coming To Town (Mel Tormé, Robert Wells) 2:57
4 Jingle Bells (Traditional) 3:52
5 Baby, It’s Cold Outside (Frank Loesser) 4:17
6 River (Joni Mitchell) 3:33
7 Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas (Hugh Martin, Ralph Blane) 3:24
8 The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire) (Mel Tormé, Robert Wells) 3:52
9 Some Children See Him (Wihla Hutson, Alfred Burt) 4:37
10 Who Comes This Night (Dave Grusin, Sally Stevens) 4:11
11 In the Bleak Midwinter (Traditional) 4:12
12 Auld Lang Syne (Traditional) 3:38
Musicians
1 Winter Wonderland
Bass | Dave Carpenter |
Drums | Vinnie Colaiuta |
Guitar | John Pizzarelli |
Piano | Dave Grusin |
Trumpet | Chris Botti |
Vocals | James Taylor |
2 Go Tell It on the Mountain
Bass | Jimmy Johnson |
Drums | Vinnie Colaiuta |
Guitar | George Doering |
Guitar | James Taylor |
Guitar | Mike Landau |
Melodica | Larry Goldings |
Piano | Dave Grusin |
Percussion | Luis Conte |
Vocals | James Taylor |
3 Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
Bass | Dave Carpenter |
Drums | Vinnie Colaiuta |
Guitar | John Pizzarelli |
Piano | Dave Grusin |
Vocals | James Taylor |
4 Jingle Bells
Bass | Jimmy Johnson |
Drums | Vinnie Colaiuta |
Guitar | George Doering |
Guitar | James Taylor |
Guitar | Mike Landau |
Organ | Larry Goldings |
Piano | Dave Grusin |
Percussion | Luis Conte |
Vocals | James Taylor |
5 Baby, It’s Cold Outside
Bass | Dave Carpenter |
Drums | Vinnie Colaiuta |
Guitar | James Taylor |
Guitar | John Pizzarelli |
Piano | Dave Grusin |
Percussion | Luis Conte |
Vocals | Natalie Cole |
Vocals | James Taylor |
6 River
Bass | Dave Carpenter |
Guitar | James Taylor |
Piano | Larry Goldings |
7 Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
Bass | Jimmy Johnson |
Drums | Steve Gadd |
Guitar | John Pizzarelli |
Piano | Larry Goldings |
Synthesizer | Clifford Carter |
Vocals | James Taylor |
8 The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)
Bass | Dave Carpenter |
Drums | Vinnie Colaiuta |
Guitar | John Pizzarelli |
Celeste | Dave Grusin |
Piano | Larry Goldings |
Harmonica | Toots Thielemans |
Vocals | James Taylor |
9 Some Children See Him
Piano | Dave Grusin |
Vocals | James Taylor |
10 Who Comes This Night
Bass | Dave Carpenter |
Guitar | George Doering |
Celeste | Dave Grusin |
Piano | Dave Grusin |
Percussion | Luis Conte |
Vocals | James Taylor |
11 In the Bleak Midwinter
Bass | Jimmy Johnson |
Drums | Vinnie Colaiuta |
Guitar | George Doering |
Guitar | Mike Landau |
Melodica | Larry Goldings |
Piano | Dave Grusin |
Harmonica | Larry Goldings |
Vocals | James Taylor |
12 Auld Lang Syne
Bass | Dave Carpenter |
Drums | Vinnie Colaiuta |
Guitar | James Taylor |
Guitar | John Pizzarelli |
Guitar | Mike Landau |
Harmonium | Larry Goldings |
Piano | Dave Grusin |
Harmonica | Larry Goldings |
Vocals | James Taylor |
Liner Notes
Producer – Charlie Paakkari (Track 6)
Producer – Dave Grusin (Tracks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
Producer – James Taylor (2) (Track 6)
Producer – Russ Titelman (Track 7)
Arranged By – Dave Grusin
Engineer (Assistant) – Charlie Paakkari
Mastered By – Doug Sax, Sangwook Nam
Mixed By – Don Murray
Recorded By – Don Murray
Art Direction – Christopher Austopchuk, David Bett
Photography – Timothy White
Phonographic Copyright Sony BMG Music Entertainment
Copyright Sony BMG Music Entertainment