Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas
Encyclopedia
Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas is a 1960 album by the American jazz
singer Ella Fitzgerald
, recorded in the summer of 1960, with a studio orchestra arranged and conducted by Frank DeVol.
It is Fitzgerald's only Verve complete album of Christmas tunes. Verve had issued a 7" 45rpm single in 1959, featuring "The Christmas Song" with "The Secret of Christmas" on the b-side, both were recorded with Russ Garcia and His Orchestra in September 1959.
LP release; Verve MG VS-64042
Side One:
Side Two:
Bonus Tracks; Issued on the Verve 2002 CD re-issue, Verve 440 065 086-2
13. "The Secret of Christmas
" - Released in 1959, 7" single, b-side (Jimmy Van Heusen, Sammy Cahn) - 2:45
14. "Medley:"We Three Kings of Orient Are"/"O Little Town of Bethleham" - Released only in the UK , on 1960 7" single, a-side (John Henry Hopkins), (Lewis H. Redner, Philiips Brooks) - 3:35
15. "Christmas Island" (Released only in the UK , on 1960 7" single, b-side) (Lyle L. Moraine) - 2:18
16. "The Christmas Song" (Alternative take) - 3:41
17. "White Christmas" (Alternative take) - 3:44
18. "Frosty the Snowman" (Alternative take) - 2:11
, New York
:
Track 13 recorded September 3, 1959, United Records, Hollywood:
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
singer Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
, recorded in the summer of 1960, with a studio orchestra arranged and conducted by Frank DeVol.
It is Fitzgerald's only Verve complete album of Christmas tunes. Verve had issued a 7" 45rpm single in 1959, featuring "The Christmas Song" with "The Secret of Christmas" on the b-side, both were recorded with Russ Garcia and His Orchestra in September 1959.
Track listing
For the 1960 VerveVerve Records
Verve Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded by Norman Granz in 1956, absorbing the catalogues of his earlier labels, Clef Records and Norgran Records , and material which had been licensed to Mercury previously.-Jazz and folk origins:The Verve...
LP release; Verve MG VS-64042
Side One:
- "Jingle BellsJingle Bells"Jingle Bells" is one of the best-known and commonly sung winter songs in the world. It was written by James Lord Pierpont and published under the title "One Horse Open Sleigh" in the autumn of 1857...
" (J.S. PierpontJames Pierpont (musician)James Lord Pierpont was an American songwriter, arranger, organist, and composer, best known for writing and composing Jingle Bells in 1857, originally entitled "The One Horse Open Sleigh". He was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and died in Winter Haven, Florida...
) – 2:21 - "Santa Claus Is Coming to TownSanta Claus Is Coming to Town"Santa Claus is Coming to Town" is a Christmas song. It was written by John Frederick Coots and Haven Gillespie, and was first sung on Eddie Cantor's radio show in November 1934....
" (J. Fred CootsJ. Fred CootsJohn Frederick Coots was an American songwriter. He wrote over 700 songs.He is most famous for the song "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town", a song that became one of the biggest best sellers in American music history....
, Haven GillespieHaven GillespieJames Lamont "Haven" Gillespie was an American Tin Pan Alley composer and lyricist. He was the writer of "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" as well as "You Go to My Head", "Honey", "By the Sycamore Tree", "That Lucky Old Sun", "Breezin' Along With The Breeze", "Right or Wrong," "Beautiful Love",...
) – 2:56 - "Have Yourself a Merry Little ChristmasHave Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" is a song introduced by Judy Garland in the 1944 MGM musical Meet Me in St. Louis. Frank Sinatra later recorded a version with modified lyrics, which has become more common than the original. The song was written by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane...
" (Ralph BlaneRalph BlaneRalph Blane was an American composer, lyricist, and performer.-Life and career:Born Ralph Uriah Hunsecker in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, Blane was the son of grocery store owners. He attended Tulsa Central High School...
, Hugh MartinHugh MartinHugh Martin was an American musical theater and film composer, arranger, vocal coach, and playwright. He is best known for his score for the 1944 MGM musical Meet Me In St...
) – 2:56 - "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" (Frank LoesserFrank LoesserFrank Henry Loesser was an American songwriter who wrote the lyrics and scores to the Broadway hits Guys and Dolls and How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, among others. He won separate Tony Awards for the music and lyrics in both shows, as well as sharing the Pulitzer Prize for...
) – 3:32 - "Sleigh RideSleigh Ride"Sleigh Ride" is a popular light orchestral piece composed by Leroy Anderson. The composer had the original idea for the piece during a heat wave in July 1946; he finished the work in February 1948. Lyrics, about a person who would like to ride in a sleigh on a winter's day with another person,...
" (Leroy AndersonLeroy AndersonLeroy Anderson was an American composer of short, light concert pieces, many of which were introduced by the Boston Pops Orchestra under the direction of Arthur Fiedler...
, Mitchell ParishMitchell ParishMitchell Parish was an American lyricist.-Early life:Parish was born Michael Hyman Pashelinsky to a Jewish family in Lithuania. His family emigrated to the United States, arriving on February 3, 1901 on the SS Dresden when he was less than a year old...
) – 2:56 - "The Christmas SongThe Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)"The Christmas Song" is a classic Christmas song written in 1944 by musician, composer, and vocalist Mel Tormé and Bob Wells. According to Tormé, the song was written during a blistering hot summer...
" (Mel TorméMel TorméMelvin Howard Tormé , nicknamed The Velvet Fog, was an American musician, known for his jazz singing. He was also a jazz composer and arranger, a drummer, an actor in radio, film, and television, and the author of five books...
, Bob WellsRobert Wells (songwriter)Robert Wells was an American songwriter, composer, script writer and television producer. During his early career, he collaborated with singer and songwriter Mel Tormé, writing several hit songs, most notably "The Christmas Song" in 1945...
) – 3:00
Side Two:
- "Good Morning Blues" (Count BasieCount BasieWilliam "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years...
, Eddie DurhamEddie DurhamEddie Durham was an American jazz guitarist, trombonist, composer and musical arranger of the swing music medium born in San Marcos, Texas, probably best known for his work with musicians like Cab Calloway, Willie Bryant, Andy Kirk, Glenn Miller, Jimmie Lunceford and Count Basie, among others...
, Jimmy RushingJimmy RushingJames Andrew Rushing , known as Jimmy Rushing, was an American blues shouter and swing jazz singer from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, best known as the featured vocalist of Count Basie's Orchestra from 1935 to 1948.Rushing was known as "Mr...
) – 3:15 - "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!Let It Snow"Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!", also known as "Let It Snow", is a song written by lyricist Sammy Cahn and composer Jule Styne in 1945. The song was written in July 1945 in Hollywood, California during one of the hottest days on record. First recorded by Vaughn Monroe, it became a popular...
" (Sammy CahnSammy CahnSammy Cahn was an American lyricist, songwriter and musician. He is best known for his romantic lyrics to films and Broadway songs, as well as stand-alone songs premiered by recording companies in the Greater Los Angeles Area...
, Jule StyneJule StyneJule Styne was a British-born American songwriter especially famous for a series of Broadway musicals, which included several very well known and frequently revived shows.-Early life:...
) – 2:43 - "Winter WonderlandWinter Wonderland"Winter Wonderland" is a winter song, popularly treated as a Christmastime pop standard, written in 1934 by Felix Bernard and Richard B. Smith . Through the decades it has been recorded by over 150 different artists.-History:...
" (Felix BernardFelix BernardFelix Bernard was an American conductor, pianist and a composer of popular music. His writing credits include the popular songs Winter Wonderland and Dardanella.-Biography:...
, Richard B. SmithRichard B. SmithRichard B. Smith wrote the lyrics to the popular song Winter Wonderland, which was composed by Felix Bernard. Smith was born in Pennsylvania, and was diagnosed with tuberculosis in 1931. He succumbed to the disease on September 28, 1935....
) – 2:16 - "Rudolph the Red-Nosed ReindeerRudolph the Red-Nosed ReindeerRudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer is a fictional reindeer with a glowing red nose. He is popularly known as "Santa's 9th Reindeer" and, when depicted, is the lead reindeer pulling Santa's sleigh on Christmas Eve. The luminosity of his nose is so great that it illuminates the team's path through...
" (Johnny MarksJohnny MarksJohnny Marks was an American songwriter. Although he was Jewish, he specialized in Christmas songs and wrote many standards, including "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer" , "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" , "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" , and "A Holly...
) – 2:51 - "Frosty the SnowmanFrosty the Snowman"Frosty the Snowman" is a popular song written by Walter "Jack" Rollins and Steve Nelson, and first recorded by Gene Autry and the Cass County Boys in 1950. It was written after the success of Autry's recording of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" the previous year; Rollins and Nelson shipped the...
" (Steve NelsonSteve NelsonSteve Nelson may refer to:* Steve Nelson , New England Patriots football player* Steve Nelson , American musician* Steve Nelson , Communist Party member, Spanish Civil War veteran and U.S...
, Jack Rollins) – 2:12 - "White ChristmasWhite Christmas (song)"White Christmas" is an Irving Berlin song reminiscing about an old-fashioned Christmas setting. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the version sung by Bing Crosby is the best-selling single of all time, with estimated sales in excess of 50 million copies worldwide.Accounts vary as...
" (Irving BerlinIrving BerlinIrving Berlin was an American composer and lyricist of Jewish heritage, widely considered one of the greatest songwriters in American history.His first hit song, "Alexander's Ragtime Band", became world famous...
) – 3:02
Bonus Tracks; Issued on the Verve 2002 CD re-issue, Verve 440 065 086-2
13. "The Secret of Christmas
The Secret of Christmas
"The Secret of Christmas" is a popular Christmas song, written by Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen for Bing Crosby, and first performed by Crosby in the 1959 film Say One for Me. Crosby recorded the song again in 1964, for the album 12 Songs of Christmas. The song has also been covered by numerous...
" - Released in 1959, 7" single, b-side (Jimmy Van Heusen, Sammy Cahn) - 2:45
14. "Medley:"We Three Kings of Orient Are"/"O Little Town of Bethleham" - Released only in the UK , on 1960 7" single, a-side (John Henry Hopkins), (Lewis H. Redner, Philiips Brooks) - 3:35
15. "Christmas Island" (Released only in the UK , on 1960 7" single, b-side) (Lyle L. Moraine) - 2:18
16. "The Christmas Song" (Alternative take) - 3:41
17. "White Christmas" (Alternative take) - 3:44
18. "Frosty the Snowman" (Alternative take) - 2:11
Personnel
Recorded July 15–16, August 5, 1960, New YorkNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
:
Track 13 recorded September 3, 1959, United Records, Hollywood:
- Ella FitzgeraldElla FitzgeraldElla Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
: Vocals - Frank DeVol: Arranger, Conductor
- Russ Garcia and His Orchestra (track 13): Arranger, Conductor