Cheers, It's Christmas Explained
Cheers, It's Christmas is the first Christmas album and seventh studio album by American country music artist Blake Shelton. It was released on October 2, 2012, through Warner Bros. Nashville.[1] Shelton co-wrote three tracks for the album.
Content
Included on the album is a rendition of Michael Bublé's "Home", done here as a duet with the original artist and featuring Christmas-themed lyrics written by Bublé at Shelton's request. Other collaborators on the album include Shelton's former wife, Miranda Lambert; the supergroup Pistol Annies, which is composed of Lambert, Ashley Monroe, and Angaleena Presley; Shelton's mother, Dorothy Shackleford; Trypta-Phunk, a funk side project founded by Shelton's touring band;[2] Kelly Clarkson, whose then-partner and now ex-husband, Brandon Blackstock, is Shelton's manager; Reba McEntire, who is Blackstock's stepmother;[3] and Xenia, who placed fifth on the first season of The Voice, a televised singing competition on which Shelton is a judge.
The Hallmark Channel holiday film, "Time for Me to Come Home for Christmas," which premiered on December 15, 2018 starring Josh Henderson and Megan Park, was inspired by the track Shelton wrote with his mother.[4] [5]
The album was re-released in 2017 with new artwork and three additional tracks: "Savior's Shadow" (from the 2016 album If I'm Honest), "Two Step ’Round the Christmas Tree" and "Christmas Eve" (a version of Gwen Stefani's Christmas Eve).[6] [7] [8]
The album re-released for a second time in 2022 with three additional tracks: "Up on the House Top", "Holly Jolly Christmas" and a cover of "Cheer for the Elves", which originally appeared on the deluxe edition of Gwen Stefani's album, "You Make It Feel Like Christmas".[9]
Commercial performance
In its first week of release, the album sold 9,000 copies in the U.S.[10] The album sold a total of 428,000 copies in the US in 2012, and was certified Gold by the RIAA on November 9, 2012. The album re-entered the charts on November 20, 2013 at number 44 on the Billboard 200, selling 8,000 copies for the week.[11] As of November 2017, the album has sold 688,400 copies in the US.[12]
Personnel
- Blake Shelton – lead vocals
- Charlie Judge – keyboards, acoustic piano
- Gordon Mote – keyboards, acoustic piano
- Bryan Sutton – acoustic guitar
- David Baldwin – electric guitar
- Brent Mason – electric guitar
- Beau Tackett – electric guitar
- Paul Franklin – pedal steel guitar
- Rob Byus – bass
- Craig Nelson – bass
- Glenn Worf – bass
- Tracy Broussard – drums, percussion
- Bob Mater – drums, percussion
- Ben Phillips – drums
- Aubrey Haynie – fiddle
- Perry Coleman – backing vocals
- Carolyn Dawn Johnson – backing vocals
- Miranda Lambert – backing vocals, lead and backing vocals on "Jingle Bell Rock"
- Reba McEntire – lead and backing vocals on "Oklahoma Christmas"
- Kelly Clarkson – lead and backing vocals on "There's A New Kid in Town"
- Michael Bublé – lead and backing vocals on "Home"
- Pistol Annies – backing vocals on "Blue Christmas"
- Xenia – lead and backing vocals on "Silver Bells"
- Dorothy Shakleford – backing vocals, lead and backing vocals on "Time for Me to Come Home
- Trypta-Phunk – lead and backing vocals on "The Very Best Time of Year"
Orchestra
- Charlie Judge – arrangements and conductor
- Stephanie O'Keefe – contractor
- Julie Gigante – concertmaster
- Horns and Woodwinds
- Dan Higgins – alto saxophone
- Joel Peskin – baritone saxophone
- Brian Scanlon – tenor saxophone
- John Mitchell – bassoon
- Gene Cipriano and Phil O'Connor – clarinet
- Dan Higgins and Steve Kujala – flute Earle Dumler – oboe
- Charlie Morillas – bass trombone
- Nick Lane – trombone
- Chuck Findley – trumpet
- Brian O'Connor, Stephanie O'Keefe, Danielle Ondarza and Brad Warnaar – French horn
- Strings
- Paul Cohen, Erika Duke-Kirkpatrick, Steve Erdody, Roger Lebow, Giovanna Moraga-Clayton and George Kim Scholes – cello
- Chuck Berghofer, Geoff Osika, Dave Stone and Mike Valerio– double bass
- Robert Brophy, Caroline Buckmam, Gina Coletti, Darrin McCaan, Eric Rynearson and Mike Whitson – viola
- Armen Anassian, Charlie Bisharat, Jackie Brand, Bruce Dukov, Nina Evtuhov, Julie Gigante, Eric Gorfain, Tamara Hatwan, Amy Hershberger, Maia Jasper, Ana Landauer, Serena McKinney, Cheryl Norman-Blake, Grace Oh, Sid Page, Joel Pargman, Radu Pieptu and Anatoly Rosinsky – violin
Production
- Scott Hendricks – producer, overdub recording, digital editing
- Brent Rowan – producer (7)
- Drew Bollman – recording, mix assistant
- Justin Niebank – recording, mixing
- Nick Spezia – recording assistant
- Tommy Vicari – horn and orchestra recording
- Chandler Harrod – horn and orchestra recording assistant
- Bill Appleby – overdub recording
- Herb Shucher – overdub recording
- Chris Ashburn – overdub assistant
- Ben O'Neill – overdub assistant
- Todd Tidwell – overdub assistant
- Ben Phillips – digital editing
- Jeffrey Welch – technical assistant
- Hank Williams – mastering
- Scott Johnson – production assistant
- Katherine Petillo – art direction
- Firecracker Studios – design
- Kristin Barlowe – photography
Studios
- Recorded at Ocean Way Nashville (Nashville, Tennessee).
- Overdubs recorded at Starstruck Studios (Nashville, Tennessee); Capitol Studios and EastWest Studios (Hollywood, California); Gas Money Studios; The Villahona Resort; Cinema Sauna.
- Edited at Riverview Back Porch Studios and Superphonic Studio (Nashville, Tennessee).
- Mixed at Blackbird Studio (Nashville, Tennessee) and Hound's Ear Studio (Franklin, Tennessee).
- Technical assistance at Design FX (Los Angeles, California).
- Mastered at MasterMix (Nashville, Tennessee).
Charts and certifications
Year-end charts
| Chart (2013) | Position |
|---|
| US Billboard 200[14] | 68 |
| US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[15] | 19 | |
Certifications
Notes and References
- News: Blake Shelton "Cheers It's Christmas" Tracklist & Cover Art. September 6, 2012. Roughstock. September 3, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120830060743/http://www.roughstock.com/blog/blake-shelton-cheers-it-s-christmas-tracklist-cover-art#. August 30, 2012. dead.
- Web site: Home Page . September 1, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130508051808/http://trypta-phunk.com/ . May 8, 2013 . dead .
- Web site: Mansfield . Brian . November 22, 2013 . Listen Up: It's beginning to sound a lot like Christmas . USA Today.
- Here's when all 79 new Christmas TV movies will air. .
- Web site: Josh Henderson and Jean Smart to Star in Hallmark Christmas Movies (Exclusive) | Entertainment Tonight. www.etonline.com. 26 March 2023.
- Web site: Blake Shelton "Freaked Out" the 1st Time He Heard Gwen Stefani Sing "Christmas Eve," 1 of 2 New Tracks on His Re-Released Holiday Album . The Country Daily . 8 August 2020 . November 10, 2017.
- Web site: Blake Shelton – Cheers, It's Christmas . Discogs . August 8, 2020.
- Web site: 2023-12-03 . Listen To Blake Shelton's Beloved Holiday Album Cheers, It's Christmas . 2023-12-22 . NBC Insider Official Site . en-US.
- Web site: Cheers, It’s Christmas (Super Deluxe) Digital Album. Blake Shelton - Official Store. 26 March 2023.
- Web site: Country Album Chart News for October 10, 2012: Little Big Town #1 for a Month; Jerrod Niemann & Blake Shelton Debut | New Country Music, Listen to Songs & Video | Roughstock.com . October 12, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20121013233707/http://www.roughstock.com/blog/country-album-chart-news-for-october-10-2012-little-big-town-1-for-a-month-jerrod-niemann-blake-shelton-debut . October 13, 2012 .
- News: Country Album Chart News: The Week Of November 20, 2013: Christmas Albums From Duck Dynasty, Kelly, Blake, Lady A & Scotty Lead Way; Kellie Pickler Debuts . Matt . Bjorke . November 20, 2013 . Roughstock .
- News: Top Country Catalog Sales Chart: November 26, 2017 . Matt . Bjorke . November 26, 2017 . Roughstock . December 16, 2017 .
- Top Country Albums: 2012 Year-End Charts. Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. January 16, 2015.
- Billboard 200 Albums: Year-End top-selling albums across all genres. Billboard .
- Top Country Albums: 2013 Year-End Charts. Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. January 16, 2015.
- Top Catalog Albums: 2014 Year-End Charts. Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. January 16, 2015.
- Top Country Albums – Year-End 2018. Billboard. July 15, 2020.
- Top Country Albums – Year-End 2019. Billboard. December 9, 2021.
