What I Really Want for Christmas

Brian Wilson | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 18, 2005)
• Original Release Date: 2005
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Arista
• ASIN: B000BC8TDM
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #191,353 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

A new Brian Wilson record is always cause for celebration, even if it turns out to be an album of Christmas music, his third such venture in 40 years. What I Really Want for Christmas features Wilson and the crack band he employed on Smile putting their spin on 10 traditional favorites, plus new versions of the Beach Boys' "Little Saint Nick" and "The Man With All the Toys" and two originals cowritten with Bernie Taupin and Jimmy Webb. Though they don't rise to the level of his best work (admittedly the tallest of orders), the title track and "Christmasey" prove Wilson can still turn out a catchy melody when he wants to, and the disc as a whole shows his arranging chops are as strong as ever, if no longer as innovative. Like Smile, What I Really Want for Christmas sometimes suffers in comparison to the Beach Boys--Wilson dedicates it to his "beloved brothers Carl and Dennis who I miss singing carols with" (as do we)--but occasionally, as on "O Holy Night," one feels the old soul and spirit shining through. Though it may not merit a spot next to The Beach Boys' Christmas Album and A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector as a classic of the genre, it's still a joy to hear Wilson singing the songs he's loved since childhood. If this is your kind of music, this is your kind of album. --Benjamin Lukoff

Product Description

His stunning first solo Christmas album! Includes two new holiday standards, the title track and Christmasey (with lyrics by Jimmy Webb), plus brilliant renditions of Auld Lang Syne; Deck the Halls; The First Noel; O Holy Night ; new versions of the Beach Boys' classics Little Saint Nick and The Man with All the Toys , and more! --This text refers to an alternate Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

60 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars So much more than I expected., October 19, 2005

By 

Michael Stack (North Chelmsford, MA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: What I Really Want for Christmas (Audio CD)

I have a confession to make. I didn't want to like this album-- Brian Wilson, after the artistic and critical triumph of "Smile" puts together a Christmas album. I mean, a Christmas album? Aren't these the bottom of the barrel of bad marketing ideas from the '60s? But you know, I'm a huge fan, so I dutifully picked it up on the day of release and eventually popped it into my CD player in my car, my expectations were about as low as they could get.

You can, of course, imagine my surprise when I thought it was fantastic.

Wilson assembled his touring band, augmented by a pair of extra horns and a string quartet, to tackle eight Christmas standards, a pair of Beach Boys Christmas classics, and a couple new songs. With top notch musicianship, a small orchestra at his disposal, and vocalists about as good as they come, one thing is increasingly clear to me-- Brian Wilson's power as an arranger is remarkably intact, moreso than one would ever guess based on his output of the past thirty years-- don't get me wrong, I loved "Love You" and "Brian Wilson" and a substantial amount of other material Wilson has done, but they were all missing some piece of magic, some magic that was captured on the 2004 re-recording of "Smile", and it's as though it was infectious. The arrangements on here are subtle, clever and inventive-- full of the kind of things that made a confessed music snob like myself excited about the Beach Boys in the first place.

Look no further than "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" for an example of what I mean-- the arrangement picks up a pseudo-Eastern European feel to it, sounding almost like a Russian folk song on electric guitars and a superb lead vocal by a more-confident-sounding Brian Wilson, superb vocal harmonies. It's got that certain-something that's been missing. This is pretty much true of about all the classics on here-- the arrangements are really a blast-- "Deck the Halls" picks up a funky, almost late '90s Chili Pepper sound, "O Holy Night" has all the subtleties that made the old Beach Boys recordings great, and "We Wish You A Merry Christmas"-- it's just one of those pieces. Opening with a piano and flute theme statement then moving onto bass harmonica and harpsichord for the vocal passages and eventually tagging in a double time chorus. Bass harmonica and harpsichord? There was only one arranger who ever though in those fashions. And certainly the a capella "Auld Lang Syne" is guaranteed to make any harmony fan happy.

The two Beach Boys pieces get faithful reinterpretations-- "Little Saint Nick" ends up being hot and exciting. The new pieces are decent enough-- "What I Really Want For Christmas" ends up being a pretty, laid back piece with fantastic, subtle percussion and a great, lush, string arrangement. "Christmasey" I'm a little less wild on, it's got a somewhat frantic and rushed feel to it that doesn't suit the piece.

The album is augmented by a trio of "bonus tracks"-- Christmas song "On Christmas Day" that Wilson recorded several years ago and released on his website, a moody arrangement of "Joy to the World" that ended up on a compilation in the late '90s, and the "Silent Night" arrangement that used to play on Wilson's website a couple Christmases ago. All of it is nice to have on disc.

For someone who's not wild on Christmas albums, I have to say I really enjoyed this one-- it's got my excited for the possibility of that rock and roll album Brian keeps saying he wants to do. Recommended.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Brian Wilson Finds Christmas, October 19, 2005

By 

Jeff Meier - See all my reviews
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This review is from: What I Really Want for Christmas (Audio CD)

I had October 18th (the release date of the cd) on my calendar.
There was no doubt I would have this one on the day of release.
Listening with my wife and teenage daughter...."goosebumps" galore. The harmonic texturing on "O Holy Night" is inspiring.
The fun and spirit of Christmas is really nicely puntuated with "We Wish You a Merry Christmas".......is there anything Brian Wilson can't do to bring musical imagination of old standards like this and "Deck the Halls"?
Other highlights include "Hark the Herald Angels Sing", "Joy to The World" on the sacred side of things. The remake of "Man With All the Toys" really has energy and spirit...as good or better than the original. "Little Saint Nick" didn't seem to have the punch and enthusiasm in the backing vocals as the original.
I really liked "On Christmas Day" a bonus track...a very reflective ballad. The new originals were arranged and performed beautifully....but not real "grabbers" initially. They do grow with repeated plays.
All in all.....a very wonderful album....a tree trimmer.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars heartbreaking, December 18, 2005

By 

Vince Leo (minneapolis, mn USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: What I Really Want for Christmas (Audio CD)

In Brian Wilson's world, christmas feels more like loss than like presents. It's not just that he dedicates this cd to his two "beloved brothers" who he misses singing christmas carols with. It's also his voice--older, harder, less resilient. what i really want for christmas is sad and beautiful like a childhood memory of christmas past: wishing the wonder could recreate itself, realizing it won't, and expanding the bittersweet knowledge of experience into something clear and lasting. most of the songs surprise, but the a capella auld lang syne is the diamond in the collection, arranged and sung as if it were the last song being sung on the last day of the world.