Wintersong is the sixth album and first Christmas album by Canadian singer-songwriter Sarah McLachlan, released in October 2006. It was produced by longtime collaborator Pierre Marchand and includes contributions from Jim Creeggan of Barenaked Ladies.[6] The album also includes a collaboration with Jazz musician Diana Krall.[7] In 2007, the album was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album. In 2015, all songs from Wintersong plus five more tracks were released as The Classic Christmas Album.
Wintersong | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | 17 October 2006 | |||
Recorded | 1994, Spring-Summer 2006[1] | |||
Genre | Christmas music | |||
Length | 45:43 | |||
Label | Nettwerk (Canada) Arista (US) | |||
Producer | Pierre Marchand | |||
Sarah McLachlan chronology | ||||
|
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [2] |
Blogcritics | (?)[3] |
Entertainment Weekly | B+[4] |
Slant Magazine | [5] |
Singles
edit"River" was released as a single from that album in September 2006.[8] The song was performed in mid-October on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and The Ellen DeGeneres Show and reached No. 71 in the Billboard Hot 100.[9] McLachlan's video for "River" premiered on Yahoo! music, on 1 November 2006. Silent Night from this album was used in an ASPCA commercial
Charts
editYear | Single | Chart | Peak position[9] |
---|---|---|---|
2006 | River | Billboard Hot 100 | 71 |
2006 | Pop 100 | 70 | |
Hot Digital Songs | 66 | ||
2007 | Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 8 | |
Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas | Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 6 | |
Happy Xmas (War Is Over) | Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 5 |
Commercial performance
editWintersong debuted at number 42 on the Billboard 200 in the United States (chart issue for the week of 3 November 2006),[10] selling 20,000 copies in its first week.[11] The album peaked at number 7 in its seventh week on the chart,[12] with 116,000 copies sold for the tracking period ending 3 December.[13] According to sales data from Nielsen/SoundScan, it was the best-selling holiday album of 2006 in the U.S. with a cumulative 759,000 copies sold for the year.[14]
On 13 December 2007, Wintersong was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for shipments of one million copies in the U.S.[15] In Canada, it has sold over 200,000 copies, and has been certified Double Platinum.[16]
In 2011, the album re-entered the Billboard 200 at number 195 on the chart issue for the week of 17 December.[17]
Track listing
editNo. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" | John Lennon, Yoko Ono | 3:28 |
2. | "What Child Is This? (Greensleeves)" | William Chatterton Dix | 3:31 |
3. | "River" | Joni Mitchell | 4:02 |
4. | "Wintersong" | Sarah McLachlan | 3:31 |
5. | "I'll Be Home for Christmas" | Walter Kent, Kim Gannon | 3:15 |
6. | "O Little Town of Bethlehem" | Phillips Brooks, Lewis Redner | 3:51 |
7. | "The First Noel / Mary Mary" | Traditional | 5:00 |
8. | "Silent Night" | Josef Mohr, Franz X. Gruber | 3:48 |
9. | "Song for a Winter's Night" | Gordon Lightfoot | 3:48 |
10. | "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" | Hugh Martin, Ralph Blane | 3:44 |
11. | "In the Bleak Mid-Winter" | Christina Rossetti, Gustav Holst | 3:46 |
12. | "Christmas Time Is Here" (featuring Diana Krall) | Vince Guaraldi, Lee Mendelson | 3:59 |
A "sampler" CD exists, featuring similar artwork on a cardboard sleeve, which omits "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)", "I'll Be Home for Christmas", "Song for a Winter's Night", and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas".
Personnel
edit- Sarah McLachlan - Vocals, Piano, Harp, Dobro[18]
- Pierre Marchand - Keyboards, Programming, Synth Bass, Quartet Manipulations, Vienna Keyboard Strings
- Jim Creeggan - Double Bass
- Colin Cripps - Guitar, Dobro
- Diana Krall - Piano on "Christmas Time Is Here".
- Ashwin Sood - Drums, Percussion
- Luke Doucet - Guitar
- Bill Dillon - Acoustic & Electric Guitar, Mandolin, Bass
- Bob Doige - Sleigh Bells
- Daryl Johnson - Bass
- Vince Mai - Trumpet, Flugelhorn
- Brian Minato - Bass
- David Kershaw - Keyboards
- David Sinclair - Guitar
Charts
edit
Weekly chartsedit
|
Year-end chartsedit
|
Certifications and sales
editRegion | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Canada (Music Canada)[25] | 3× Platinum | 300,000^ |
United States (RIAA)[27] | Platinum | 1,100,000[26] |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Brian Dakss (5 December 2006). "Sarah McLachlan's Atypical Christmas CD". CBS News. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
- ^ Allmusic review
- ^ "Blogcritics review". Archived from the original on 6 January 2007. Retrieved 22 December 2006.
- ^ "Entertainment Weekly review". Archived from the original on 25 April 2009. Retrieved 3 July 2013.
- ^ Slant Magazine review
- ^ Katie Hasty (6 August 2006). "McLachlan Salutes Holiday Season On New CD". Billboard. Retrieved 21 December 2006.
- ^ Wintersong SarahMcLachlan.com Retrieved 18 May 2007
- ^ News SarahMcLachlan.com Retrieved 18 May 2007
- ^ a b Sarah McLachlan Billboard.com Retrieved 18 May 2007
- ^ "Billboard 200 (Week of November 4, 2006)". Billboard. Archived from the original on 3 February 2015. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
- ^ Hasty, Katie (25 October 2006). "Diddy Scores First No. 1 Album In Nine Years". Billboard. Archived from the original on 20 March 2015. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
- ^ "Billboard 200 (Week of December 16, 2006)". Billboard. Archived from the original on 28 January 2015. Retrieved 20 August 2024.
- ^ Morris, Chris (7 December 2006). "Incubus 'Grenades' No. 1 on Billboard 200". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 18 January 2022. Retrieved 20 August 2024 – via The Hollywood Reporter.
- ^ Grein, Paul (4 December 2009). "Chart Watch Extra: Bring On Christmas!". Billboard. Archived from the original on 11 December 2009. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
- ^ "RIAA Searchable Database – Gold & Platinum Certifications". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 16 December 2010.
- ^ CRIA Gold & Platinum certifications for January 2007 Archived 26 May 2010 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 25 July 2007.
- ^ "Music Albums", Billboard.com, 8 December 2011.
- ^ AllMusic Allmusic.com Retrieved 18 May 2007
- ^ "Sarah McLachlan Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
- ^ "Sarah McLachlan Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
- ^ "Sarah McLachlan Chart History (Holiday Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
- ^ a b "Nielsen Music 2006 Year End Music Industry Report for Canada". Nielsen SoundScan. Archived from the original on 25 February 2007. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ Paul Grein. "Chart Watch Extra: Bring On Christmas!". Yahoo!. Archived from the original on 11 December 2009. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ "2007: Billboard 200 Albums". Billboard. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
- ^ "Canadian album certifications – Sarah McLachlan – Wintersong". Music Canada. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
- ^ Keith Caulfield. "Sarah McLachlan Talks 'Challenge' of Making New Holiday Album & Secrets of Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade". Billboard. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
- ^ "American album certifications – Sarah Mc Lachlan – Wintersong". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 26 October 2016.