Merry Christmas (Bing Crosby album)
| Merry Christmas | ||||
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| Compilation album by Bing Crosby | ||||
| Released | 1945 (original 78rpm album) 1947 (re-release 78rpm album) 1949 (original LP album) 1955 (re-designed LP album) |
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| Recorded | 1942, 1943, 1945, 1947, 1950, 1951 | |||
| Genre | Christmas | |||
| Length |
27:24 (original 78rpm album) 21:37 (re-release 78rpm album) 32:57 (original LP album) |
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| Label | Decca | |||
| Bing Crosby chronology | ||||
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| White Christmas | |
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| Compilation album by Bing Crosby | |
| Released | Current reissue: 2014 |
| Label | Geffen, Universal |
| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   |
Merry Christmas is a compilation album by Bing Crosby that was released in 1945 on Decca Records. It has remained in print through the vinyl, CD, and downloadable file eras, currently as the disc and digital album White Christmas on MCA Records, a part of the Universal Music Group, (reissued in June 1995) and currently on vinyl as Merry Christmas on Geffen Records (re-issued in September 2014). It includes Crosby's signature song "White Christmas", the best-selling single of all time with estimated sales of over 50 million copies worldwide. The album has sold over 15 million copies and is the second best-selling Christmas album of all-time behind Elvis' Christmas Album, which has sold more than 19 million copies worldwide.
The original album consisted of ten songs on five 78 records, all of which had been previously released. Each one had a holiday theme with the exception of "Danny Boy", paired with "I'll Be Home for Christmas" on its original record. Prior to the long-playing album era, such assemblies were not uncommon for popular music, Merry Christmas instigated by the enormous popularity of the "White Christmas" record. The 78rpm album quickly reached the top of the Billboard Best-selling popular record albums chart in 1945 and remained there for several weeks.
Decca issued a second edition in this format in 1947, catalogue Decca A-550, consisting of four 78s, omitting recordings of "Danny Boy" and "Let's Start the New Year Right" from the previous release, and including new recordings of "White Christmas" and "Silent Night" from March 19, 1947. This recording of "White Christmas," heard on every subsequent pressing, is actually a re-recording of the song as, in an unprecedented occurrence, the 1942 master had actually worn out and was no longer usable. Decca and Crosby undertook the remake with the same orchestra and chorus, in an attempt to re-create the original May 1942 recording as closely as possible. The original recording of "White Christmas" to this date, has never been stamped on LP records or 45 rpm singles.
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