Ultimate Christmas

Ultimate Christmas
Compilation album (Christmas) by The Beach Boys
Released	22 September 1998
Recorded	October 1963 - November 1977
Genre	Rock
Length	61:58
Label	Capitol
Producer	Brian Wilson, Al Jardine and Dennis Wilson
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The Beach Boys chronology
Endless Harmony Soundtrack (1998) (2000) Ultimate Christmas (1998) The Greatest Hits - Volume 1: 20 Good Vibrations (1999)

Ultimate Christmas is a 1998 seasonal compilation of music by The Beach Boys released on Capitol Records. It rounds up all of the tracks from 1964's The Beach Boys' Christmas Album, including alternate versions of its lead single, "Little Saint Nick", while also including the extremely rare 1974 holiday single, "Child of Winter (Christmas Song)". In addition, there are a handful of unreleased tracks from the aborted Merry Christmas from the Beach Boys album in 1977, some of which were revised to be included on M.I.U. Album the following year.

As a collection of the Beach Boys' Christmas tunes, Ultimate Christmas manages to round up virtually every song the band recorded and released on the subject. In 2004 Capitol took it out of print and replaced it with Christmas with the Beach Boys, essentially the same compilation with new cover art and one song ("Christmas Time Is Here Again") removed from the tracklist.

Track listing

1. "Little Saint Nick" (Brian Wilson/Mike Love) – 2:01
   • Features Mike Love on lead vocals
   • Album version; different mix from the 1963 mono single
2. "The Man with All the Toys" (Brian Wilson/Mike Love) – 1:32
   • Features Brian Wilson and Mike Love on lead vocals
3. "Santa's Beard" (Brian Wilson/Mike Love) – 2:00
   • Features Mike Love on lead vocals
4. "Merry Christmas, Baby" (Brian Wilson) – 2:21
   • Features Mike Love on lead vocals
5. "Christmas Day" (Brian Wilson) – 1:47
   • Features Al Jardine on lead vocals
6. "Frosty the Snowman" (including the frosty the snowman handjive)(Steve Nelson/Jack Rollins) – 1:54
   • Features Brian Wilson on lead vocals
7. "We Three Kings of Orient Are" (John Henry Hopkins) – 4:03
   • Features Brian Wilson and Mike Love on lead vocals
8. "Blue Christmas" (Billy Hayes/Jay W. Johnson) – 3:09
   • Features Brian Wilson on lead vocals
9. "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" (J. Fred Coots/Haven Gillespie) – 2:20
   • Features Brian Wilson and Mike Love on lead vocals
10. "White Christmas" (Irving Berlin) – 2:29
    • Features Brian Wilson on lead vocals
11. "I'll Be Home for Christmas" (Kim Gannon/Walter Kent/Buck Ram) – 2:44
    • Features Brian Wilson on lead vovals
12. "Auld Lang Syne" (Trad. Arr. Brian Wilson) – 1:19
    • Features Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Carl Wilson, Al Jardine and Dennis Wilson on lead vocals
    • Above 12 tracks originally released as The Beach Boys' Christmas Album in 1964
13. "Little Saint Nick" (Single version) (Brian Wilson/Mike Love) – 2:08
    • Features Mike Love on lead vocals
14. "Auld Lang Syne" (Alternate mix) (Trad. Arr. Brian Wilson) – 1:23
    • Features Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Carl Wilson, Al Jardine and Dennis Wilson on lead vocals
15. "Little Saint Nick" (Alternate version) (Brian Wilson/Mike Love) – 2:04
    • Features Brian Wilson and Mike Love on lead vocals
    • Utilizes the melody and backing track from All Summer Long's "Drive-In"
16. "Child of Winter (Christmas Song)" (Brian Wilson/Stephen Kalinich) – 2:49
    • Features Brian Wilson and Mike Love on lead vocals
    • 1974 single-only release
17. "Santa's Got An Airplane" (Alan Jardine/Brian Wilson/Mike Love) – 3:09
    • Features Mike Love and Al Jardine on lead vocals
    • Released as "Loop De Loop (Flip Flop Flyin' In An Aeroplane)" on Endless Harmony Soundtrack in 1998, and again in 2000
18. "Christmas Time Is Here Again" (Buddy Holly/Norman Petty/Jerry Allison/new lyrics by Al Jardine) – 3:02
    • Features Al Jardine on lead vocals
    • Revised and released as "Peggy Sue" on M.I.U. Album in 1978
19. "Winter Symphony" (Brian Wilson) – 3:00
    • Features Brian Wilson on lead vocals
20. "(I Saw Santa) Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" (Brian Wilson/Al Jardine) – 2:23
    • Features Al, Matt and Adam Jardine on lead vocals
21. "Melekalikimaka" (aka "Kona Christmas") (Alan Jardine/Mike Love) – 2:34
    • Features Mike Love and Al Jardine on lead vocals
    • Revised and released as "Kona Coast" on M.I.U. Album in 1978
22. "Bells of Christmas" (Alan Jardine/Ron Altbach/Mike Love) – 2:44
    • Features Mike Love on lead vocals
    • Revised and released as "Belles Of Paris" on M.I.U. Album in 1978
23. "Morning Christmas" (Dennis Wilson) – 3:22
    • Features Dennis Wilson on lead vocals
24. "Toy Drive Public Service Announcement" – 1:23
    • Recorded in 1977
25. "Dennis Wilson Christmas Message" – 0:31
    • Recorded in 1977
26. "Brian Wilson Christmas Interview" – 2:35
    • Recorded in 1964

Ultimate Christmas (Capitol 72434 95734 2 0) never charted in the US or the UK.

Sources

• Ultimate Christmas CD booklet notes, Brad Elliott, c.1998.

• Allmusic.com