A Charlie Brown Christmas [Expanded]

Vince Guaraldi Trio | Format: MP3 Music

Product Details

• Original Release Date: October 10, 2006
• Release Date: October 10, 2006
• Label: Fantasy Records
• Copyright: (C) 2006 Concord Music Group, Inc.
• Record Company Required Metadata: Music file metadata contains unique purchase identifier. Learn more.
• Total Length: 55:30
• Genres:
  • Jazz
• ASIN: B000UBJRS0
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (607 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,229 Paid in MP3 Albums (See Top 100 Paid in MP3 Albums)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

278 of 290 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Clearing the air on this gem of a reissue... December 6, 2006

By Joseph M. Luca

Format:Audio CD

No, this is not your father's A Charlie Brown Christmas album. As has been pointed out here already, there's a different mix and alternate takes. But some points should be brought to a prospective buyer's attention so as to truly appreciate what's been done here.

The remix by Stephen Hart serves 1 purpose - to clean up a poorly recorded (even by mid-sixties standards)soundtrack. Noise reduction was used to remove excessive hiss, and the new mix was re-eq'd to accomodate listening by today's standards. It had been suggested that some left hand work by Vince is lost in this mix, but that is highly unlikely since, although probably recorded on a 4-track machine, the trio appeared to have had each of their instruments recorded in mono. Stephen merely places each instrument slightly to the left,center, or right in order to give a "live club" spaciousness to the sound, rather than the typical studio panned mixes we hear today.

In my opinion, people who are disgruntled with the actual sound of this disc have just been used to the original mix for so long that this appears foreign to them. They're just not used to it. If they long for a 60's sounding disc - they should simply convert their vinyl album to cd-r!

As for the replaced takes...that's another story altogether. Regarding the "wrong take" of "Linus & Lucy": the one presented on this reissue is actually the one that was used in the film (and this marks the first time this take was made commercially available). All previous issues of this soundtrack album used the version from the A Boy Named Charlie Brown documentary soundtrack.

We've NEVER had a commercially available version of the take of "Christmas Time is Here" (either the vocal or instrumental version) from the film, and this reissue is no exception, it is as the initial Fantasy release had it. The excerpt from "Christmas is Coming" in the film is to short to determine what take was finally used in it. The version on the new disc is NOT the one on the original issue, nor is the alternate bonus track.

Also, the take of "O Tannenbaum" is not an alternate version, but rather offers an arpeggiated chord introduction that apparently was overdubbed as an afterthought and was later cut out from the initial release. The version of "The Christmas Song" is the same as the original, not another take which was previously reported.

On a last note, there's a pleasant surprise at the end of "Skating," which is the same take as the original issue, but dosen't fade out and we're able to hear Vince's trio finish the song outright. Ditto for the instrumental track of "Christmas Time is Here" (though the effect is less dramatic). Jazz tunes were not meant to fade out!!

Should more care have been taken in letting the consumer know about these changes? Absolutely! But in spite of their...um... carelessness, this new reissue is a must have for all Vince & Charlie Brown Christmas fans.

109 of 111 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Peanuts Christmas Jazz Masterpiece December 8, 2000

By Darren

Format:Audio CD

I really don't think any Christmas music collection could be complete without this soundtrack. When I think back of my childhood and watching the Charlie Brown Christmas Special on CBS during the holidays, I can't help but remember the warm feeling that Vince Guaraldi's arrangements instilled in me while watching the special. Looking back now, I also think that this soundtrack music was my first memorable exposure to jazz and probably set the stage for my musical appeal to instrumental jazz. "Christmas Time is Here" has become a Holiday jazz standard and has been re-recorded by a number of jazz vocalists but my personal favorite is "Skating". This is the Tao of Christmas. You can't help but lose yourself in the meditative freedom expressed in this arrangement, like the Peanuts characters in the movie, gliding so freely, smoothly and gracefully on the frozen pond in the pristine greyness of winter.

If you grew up watching the Peanuts during Christmas, this CD takes you back to that place in your childhood Christmas heart.

59 of 61 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Put 5 stars for Guaraldi on the top of Charlie Brown's tree December 5, 2002

By Joanna Daneman #1 HALL OF FAMETOP 10 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Audio CD

It wasn't only the wonderful humor of Charles Schulz and the adorable child voices that made "A Charlie Brown Christmas" such an enduring holiday favorite. The score by Vince Guaraldi was sophisticated and sensitive and stands alone as one of the best holiday albums ever. Frankly, we play it all year long, yes, Christmas in July or June or whenever.)

The original compositions ("Skating", "Linus and Lucy", "Christmas is Coming") are brilliant, quirky and humorous, yet are far from childish. They are jazz compositions of real merit, and Guaraldi must have been a true "Peanuts" fan because he really was able to interpret Schulz's characters in musical form.

The score also has Guaraldi's interpretations of favorite Christmas carols. In "Greensleeves" in particular, you can hear how Guaraldi flavors this English classic with snippets of the Charlie Brown music--very clever and makes the score hang together as a unit and not just a patchwork of holiday tunes.

Sometimes the sound is a bit fuzzy on this recording (made originally in 1965), but that doesn't detract much from the pure pleasure of the score. This is a CD we play frequently and I must say, it never palls. I hear new things every time.