Elton John - Elton John's Christmas Party
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CD Details
Artist: Elton JohnEdition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 2006-10-10
Music Label: Hip-O Records
Soundtracks:
- Step Into Christmas - Elton John
- Feliz Navidad - El Vez
- The Man With All The Toys - The Beach Boys
- A Change At Christmas (Say It Isn't So) - The Flaming Lips
- It Doesn't Often Snow At Christmas - Pet Shop Boys
- Spotlight On Christmas - Rufus Wainwright
- Jingle Bell Rock - The Ventures
- Run Rudolph Run - Chuck Berry
- Merry Christmas Baby - Otis Redding
- Christmas Island - Jimmy Buffett
- Christmas Must Be Tonight - The Band
- 2000 Miles - The Pretenders
- December Will Be Magic Again - Kate Bush
- New Year's Day - U2
- Calling It Christmas - Elton John
Music reviews of Elton John's Christmas Party
Music Review: Not a cool party to me! Hip-O Records yanked six tracks from the original version! Buyer beware!
Rating: 3 Stars
The various artists compilation CD "Elton John's Christmas Party" was first released in 2005, but it was manufactured by the Hear Music imprint for Universal Music Enterprises. That means it was available for purchase mainly at Starbucks Coffee retail stores, with a retail price of $14.95 ($18.95 in Canada). Now you'd think Hip-O Records would be doing us a favor by re-releasing this set in 2006 on their label, thus making it widely available for purchase everywhere. But alas, that's not the case, because for the 2006 version of this set, a full six tracks have been removed from the original tracklist. Those six tracks are as follows:
- "Frosty The Snowman" by The Ronettes
- "Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town" by Bruce Springsteen
- "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer" by The Crystals
- "Playa's Ball" by OutKast
- "St. Patricks's Day" by John Mayer
- "Please Come Home For Christmas" by The Eagles
I'm not sure why Sir Elton wanted to include the OutKast and John Mayer tracks in the first place, and I don't consider those to be a great loss for a Christmas compilation. But here's what irks me that many people may not even notice: the Ronettes and Crystals tracks were both originally released on the classic 1963 Phil Spector holiday rock album "A Christmas Gift For You" (possibly the greatest holiday album of all time, if not one of the greatest). And if you look carefully at the cartoonish CD cover artwork, Sir Elton happens to be holding a vinyl copy of one of the old reissued versions of this album (when it was renamed "Phil Spector's Christmas Album" for reissues during the 1970s and 1980s). So not only has Hip-O yanked the two tracks that came from that classic Spector album, they didn't even bother changing the cover art for the new downsized version of the set.
Oh, and did I also mention that the suggested retail price of the new downsized version is $15.98. That's higher than the suggested retail price of the set when it had 21 tracks and was sold mainly at Starbucks Coffee stores in the U.S. This is yet another example of paying more and getting less, which is oh so woefully typical of corporate America these days. Personally, I can't understand why Sir Elton would go along with these changes (assuming he had a say in it), but I'm sure licensing fees had something to do with it.
So if you really wanna grab the better version of this compilation, my suggestion is to scan auction sites like eBay every so often, or buy a copy from a private seller here at amazon.com if one is available. Unfortunately, the original 21-track version of the set is now out of print.
Description of Elton John's Christmas Party
Pet Shop Boys It Doesn't Often Snow At Christmas Canadian CD albumElton sure knows how to throw a good holiday party! Or at least someone at the record label does. This diverse CD with personal liner notes by the superstar songwriter throws the ancient surf rock licks of the Ventures together with the contemporary genius of Rufus Wainwright, the eccentric rock of the Flaming Lips and El Vez, plus some Christmas classics from the pop, soul, and hip-hop worlds. With 21 titles, including two Elton John tunes that bookend the package, it's one of the best value holiday discs and most enjoyable compilations you can find. From the Beach Boys "The Man with All the Toys" and Springsteen's live version of "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" to the Ronettes' "Frosty the Snowman" and Otis Redding's "Merry Christmas Baby," your party won't stop, even for the bluesy workout of "Please Come Home for Christmas" by the Eagles and the Band's haunting original "Christmas Must Be Tonight." Can you find these cuts on other Christmas records? Sure. But can you find them alongside the Pet Shop Boys' "It Doesn't Often Snow at Christmas," one of the record's real finds, or cuts by John Mayer, OutKast's "Player's Ball," the uniquely indescribable Kate Bush and others? No, you can't and that's the beauty of Elton's memorable choices. Proceeds benefit the Elton John AIDS Foundation. Highly recommended. --Martin Keller
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