Holiday for Swing
| Holiday for Swing | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Seth MacFarlane | ||||
| Released | September 30, 2014 | |||
| Recorded | December 25–31, 2013[1] | |||
| Studio | Abbey Road Studios | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 42:41 | |||
| Label | Republic | |||
| Producer | ||||
| Seth MacFarlane chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Holiday for Swing | ||||
|
||||
Holiday for Swing is the second full-length studio album, and first Christmas-themed album from Seth MacFarlane, released by Republic Records on September 30, 2014.[1][2] It is available on CD, vinyl and as a digital download.[2] The album is a collection of Christmas songs and contains collaborations with artists including Norah Jones and Sara Bareilles.[1] It also features Frank Sinatra's bassist Chuck Berghoffer as well as a 65-piece orchestra.[1][3] The album is the follow-up to MacFarlane's Grammy-nominated 2011 debut album Music Is Better Than Words. Like Music Is Better Than Words, Holiday for Swing was produced and conducted by film and television composer Joel McNeely.[4]
Background and recording
On May 15, 2014, it was announced that MacFarlane had completed his first Christmas album and that it would be released in time for the 2014 holiday season.[4]
The album was recorded between Christmas Day and New Year's Eve 2013 in Los Angeles and in studio 2 at Abbey Road Studios in London.[1][3][4] In an interview with Billboard, MacFarlane explained why the album was recorded during the holidays nearly one year before its release:
"Generally with a holiday album, you find yourself making the recordings during the summer or any time but Christmas, with this one we actually lucked out. Part of it was because we didn’t want to bump up against the production schedule for Ted 2, which is not an ideal time to be recording anything with 12 to 15 hour days shooting a movie. It worked out nicely, and it was just a pure joy to do."[1]
Release
Holiday for Swing was released on September 30, 2014, through Republic Records.[1]
Critical reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [5] |
| Los Angeles Times | [6] |
Holiday for Swing received mostly positive reviews from music critics upon its release.
Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic rated the album three stars out of five and states: "Apart from the ever so slight notion that he's singing with a wink borrowed from Burl Ives -- a tell that gives away his status as a Gen-Xer weaned on Rankin & Bass holiday productions -- MacFarlane plays it straight, even when he's camping it up with Sara Bareilles on "Baby, It's Cold Outside" (Norah Jones is the other guest, singing on "Little Jack Frost Get Lost"), and this sincerity plays out in his favor."[5]
Track listing
| Standard edition[5] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original artist | Length |
| 1. | "Let It Snow" | Vaughn Monroe | 3:04 | |
| 2. | "Christmas Dreaming" |
| Frank Sinatra | 2:49 |
| 3. | "I'll Be Home for Christmas" | Bing Crosby | 3:55 | |
| 4. | "Little Jack Frost Get Lost" (featuring Norah Jones) | Frankie Carle and His Orchestra | 2:36 | |
| 5. | "Snow" |
|
3:01 | |
| 6. | "Marshmallow World" | Crosby | 2:16 | |
| 7. | "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" | Frank Loesser | Margaret Whiting | 5:00 |
| 8. | "Baby, It's Cold Outside" (featuring Sara Bareilles) | Loesser | 3:01 | |
| 9. | "Mele Kalikimaka" | Robert Alexander Anderson | Crosby and the Andrews Sisters | 2:35 |
| 10. | "Warm in December" | Sidney Keith Russell | Julie London | 3:19 |
| 11. | "Moonlight in Vermont" | Whiting | 4:02 | |
| 12. | "Everybody's Waiting for the Man with the Bag" |
| Kay Starr | 2:46 |
| 13. | "The Christmas Song" | The King Cole Trio | 4:17 | |
Total length: |
42:41 | |||
Personnel
Credits adapted from AllMusic:[7]
|
|
|
Chart performance
| Chart (2014) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200[8] | 51 |
| US Top Jazz Albums (Billboard)[9] | 3 |
| US Top Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[10] | 1 |
| US Top Holiday Albums (Billboard)[11] | 8 |
Release history
| Region | Date | Format(s) | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States[2] | September 30, 2014 | Republic |
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Hampp, Andrew (August 26, 2014). "Seth MacFarlane on Playing It Straight for His New 'Holiday for Swing' Album". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved August 29, 2014.
- 1 2 3 "Holiday For Swing: Music". Amazon.com. ASIN B00NBNS94M. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
- 1 2 Ben Beaumont-Thomas (May 16, 2014). "Seth MacFarlane records Christmas album with Norah Jones". The Guardian. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
- 1 2 3 Trakin, Roy (May 15, 2014). "Seth MacFarlane Set to Release Christmas Album". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 29, 2014.
- 1 2 3 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Holiday for Swing! - Seth MacFarlane". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved October 1, 2014.
- ↑ Lewis, Randy (November 26, 2014). "Holiday reviews". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
- ↑ "Holiday for Swing - Seth MacFarlane - Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved October 1, 2014.
- ↑ "Seth MacFarlane – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Seth MacFarlane.
- ↑ "Seth MacFarlane – Chart history" Billboard Top Jazz Albums for Seth MacFarlane.
- ↑ "Seth MacFarlane – Chart history" Billboard Top Heatseekers Albums for Seth MacFarlane.
- ↑ "Seth MacFarlane – Chart history". Billboard Top Holiday Albums for Seth MacFarlane.