A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector
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 | Product Details: Release Date: 23 December 1999 Record Label: Abkco Rating:  Sales Rank: 52502 | | Look for similar items by category:
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| | Customer Reviews: Phil Spector is Not Just For Christmas (22 December 2008)Born Harvey Phillip Spector, in the Bronx area of New York, it could be said that Phil Spector has Christmas in his blood being born on the 26th of December. Released in November 1963 on the ABKCO record label, A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector quickly became the benchmark for what a Christmas album should be, arguably the greatest Christmas record ever released. In the 45 years since its release, this title has never looked like being removed from this album further proving the genius of the man behind this record. Phil Spector's musical legacy will always be The Wall of Sound. It has become a rather cliché term over the years, however it cannot be understated what Spector brought to the table, his ability to put layer upon layer of sounds on top of each other in a seemingly flawless fashion, created a level of depth to music not heard until the age of digital and computer generated fakery, with a Spector record though we have the real thing. And the real thing with this Record is the raw power of it, combined with the warmth of the glow that fills the room whenever it is played. Contained within are tracks by four of Spector's preferred artists from 1963. Bob B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans, The Ronettes, The Crystals and of course the great Darlene Love. All tracks are arranged and produced by Phil Spector. Darlene Love's contribution is by far the strongest efforts on the album, her version of Winter Wonderland is track one on this album, and what a start it is, her voice combined with the depth of the music proves to be irresistible. This way of creating music is not exclusive to Darlene Love obviously; it also runs from track 2 right through to Bob B Soxx's version of Here Comes Santa Claus on track 12. The final track features Phil Spector sharing his views of this album with a version of Silent Night playing in the background, this despite my poor description of this song, is actually rather sweet and nice, and is a fitting ending to an all round belting album. Phil Spector's aim with this album was to attempt to redefine the Christmas song and he succeeds incredibly. His treatment of great classic songs some over 50 years old at the time of recording, combined with four of the best acts from the US of the time, creates an instantly memorable album, songs which have define Christmas for every generation since. The songs on this album are poppy, catchy but still maintain a strong spirit of Christmas, which makes it a must for any house, not just for December I feel. Merry Christmas fans of The Cellar Tapes and enjoy! Christmas was cancelled (05 June 2008)When this album hit the shops Pres.Kennedy had just been assasinated.As no one felt like celebrating-so they say-the album was a total flop and warehouses all over the country had 1000s of returned copies. Understandably Spector was annoyed after all that work! Probably the fact that the Singing Nun represented that years Christmas hit! In 1964 the British Invasion which gave a boost to his career as the Ronettes toured the U K and the man came here to nob with the Stones and his British answer Andrew Loog Oldham who would prove beneficial. as for the Beatles they would be his Saviour and by the early 70s both Harrison and Lennon had increased his bank balance considerably as well as his ego.Plus the fact that Apple had reissued the Christmas album. Meanwhile it had become very collectable on the Philles label but couldn't be found anywhere.So as usually happens people were paying silly money like they still do for the withdrawn Ike & Tina album River deep-an album which still has to be found on U K import!But thats another story. By the mid 70s a few warehouses were opened up and copies of the Philles album were sent around the World-devaluing an item people had paid daft money for. Ha! Ha! Ha! As near to Christmas pefection as you can get this far south of the North Pole!! (29 November 2007)Brilliant, this is the soundtrack to everyones Christmas! From beginning to end this CD will have something for everyone. I only play 2 "oldie" Christmas albums, this and Elvis' "Christmas Peace", of the them Mr Spector wins hands down!! The Best Christmas Album Ever (15 June 2006)Not only will you know all the songs, you will know all these versions. After 43 years, these recordings still get played by most radio stations in December. Apparantly, this album was not a hit when originally released in November 1963, as Phil Spector withdrew it from release as a mark of respect when JFK was assassinated. Since then it has become a classic, loved by children of all ages. My favorite is Darlene Love's 'Christmas Baby Please Come Come'. What a voice, what a song. This album is guarenteed to get any Christmas party going. Buy it now so you are ready! Phil Spector does a "Wall of Sound" Christmas album (25 December 2005)I was never enamored with the results when Phil Spector tried the "Wall of Sound" approach with the Beatles on "Let It Be," but that failure was the exception that proves the rule. In 1963 Spector actually decided to use his approach to produce one of the great Christmas albums of all time. The goal was to have a holiday album that would stack up against both other Christmas albums and the pop albums produced by his quartet of artists: Darlene Love, the Ronettes, the Crystals, and Bob B. Soxx and The Blue Jeans. The artists split up the first dozen tracks on "A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector," with everybody joining together for "Silent Night" as the album's grand finale. Darlene Love was never really a success as a solo artist, although she did the lead vocals on "She's a Rebel." But she gets to make or break this album by singing the opening track, "White Christmas," and making it clear the song can work if not being crooned by Der Bingle. "Marshmallow World" is fun but a trifle, while her "Winter Wonderland" may be the best track on the album, with "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" a soulful plea not to be separated for the holidays. No wonder Love got the most tracks on the album. The Ronettes were sisters Veronica (Ronnie) and Estelle Bennett and their cousin Nedra Talley rock a bit more than usual with their version of "Frosty the Snowman" and keep the spirit going with "Sleigh Ride" and "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus." The change of pace offering on the album would definitely be Bob B. Soxx and The Blue Jeans doing "The Bells of St. Mary," although "Here Comes Santa Claus" is certainly more in keeping with the rest of the record. This was Spector's studio group and compared to the rest of the album you can understand why they only got two tracks. The best effort by the Crystals is obviously "Santa Claus is Coming to Town," which surely was the model for the better known rocking version by the Boss. Their version of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" does not work nearly as well (it is one of those songs where you would swear it is really one of Spector's Top 10 hits with different words, which simply shows the producer was creating the effect he wanted here). "Parade of the Wooden Soldiers" is in the same mode, but there is a sense in which the "Wall of Sound" is just effective. Spector comes out to wish everybody the very merriest of Christmases and happiest of New Years for "Silent Night," which is a reminder of when music groups used to talk directly to their fans on records. That seems a bit strange now, but what stands out more is how the simple musical arrangement at the end is such a complete change of pace from the rest of the album, so that "A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector" ends on a much quieter note. But up to that point this is certainly one of the high energy Christmas albums of all time and if you need a burst of musical energy to get you through decorating, cooking, or whatever, this one fits the bill. |
