What a Night! A Christmas Album, by American singer, pianist and bandleader Harry Connick Jr., was released on November 4, 2008.,What a Night! A Christmas Album, Amazon.com being his third Christmas album, since 1993's When My Heart Finds Christmas and 2003's Harry for the Holidays. The album consists of new recordings of Christmas classics, and new songs written by Connick.Harry Connick, Jr/What a Night! A Christmas Album, elusivedisc.com
The first public mentioning of recording the album, came in an interview in The Times-Picayune in June 2008.Harry Connick Jr.'s new Lifetime movie raises money for breast cancer research, The Times-Picayune, June 22, 2008
The album was first called Christmas Day, but the title was changed in September 2008, to What a Night! A Christmas Album.
The track "Song for the Hopeful", is a duet with Kim Burrell. The song was written by Connick for the 2008 television film Living Proof.What a Night! A Christmas Album, Barnes & Noble Burell is also featured on "Let There Be Peace On Earth".
Connick has three daughters with his wife Jill Goodacre, and their middle daughter Sarah Kate, sings a duet with him on the track "Winter Wonderland".Harry Connick Jr. Celebrates the Holidays With Seasonal Favorites and New Songs on 'What A Night! – A Christmas Album', The Earth Times, October 6, 2008
When the track list was first announced, the songs "Christmas Time is Here" and "Trinity", was part of the album. In early October, those two tracks were replaced with two new tracks: "Christmas Day", and an instrumental version of Tchaikovsky's "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy".
Track listing "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" (Edward Pola, George Wyle) – 3:28 "What a Night!" (Harry Connick Jr.) – 3:24 "Christmas Day" (Connick) – 3:24 "Have a Holly Jolly Christmas" (Johnny Marks) – 4:05 "Please Come Home for Christmas" (Charles Brown, Gene Redd) – 4:26 "O Come All Ye Faithful" (traditional) – 4:15 "Dance Of The Sugarplum Fairies" (Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) – 2:46 "Let There Be Peace On Earth" (Sy Miller, Jill Jackson) – 3:30 – feat. Kim Burrell "Winter Wonderland" (Felix Bernard, Richard B. Smith) – 3:50 – feat. Kate Connick "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" (Meredith Willson) – 3:30 "Santariffic" (Connick) – 3:58 – feat. Lucien Barbarin "Jingle Bells" (James Lord Pierpont) – 5:28 "Zat You Santa Claus" (Jack Fox) – 3:40 "We Three Kings" (Reverend John Henry Hopkins Jr.) – 4:45 "Song for the Hopeful" (Connick) – 4:35 – feat. Kim Burrell
iTunes bonus track "Auld Lang Syne" (traditional) – 2:16 (album only) Digital Booklet (album only)
Barnes & Noble Exclusive Version "Deck the Halls" (traditional) – 2:57 "Christmas Time is Here" (Vince Guaraldi, Lee Mendelson) – 5:06 "O Christmas Tree" (traditional) – 3:22
Disc 2 (DVD) Holiday interview with Harry Photo gallery "(It Must Have Been) Ol’ Santa Claus" "I Pray on Christmas" "The Happy Elf" *
[*] also found on the Harry for the Holidays DVD
Charts
Weekly charts Chart (2008) Peakposition US Billboard 200 20 US Top Holiday Albums (Billboard) 5 US Top Jazz Albums (Billboard) 1
Year-end charts Chart (2009) Position US Billboard 200 146 US Top Jazz Albums (Billboard) 3
Personnel Arrangement by Harry Connick Jr.
Harry Connick Jr. – vocals, piano Lucien Barbarin – trombone Kim Burrell – vocals, piano, keyboards Kate Connick – vocals James Hall & Worship & Praise – background vocals Jonathan Batiste – vocals, keyboards, piano Neal Caine – bass Jonathan DuBose Jr. – vocals, guitar Charles "Ned" Goold – alto saxophone Jerry Weldon – tenor saxophone Dave Schumacher – baritone saxophone Roger Ingram – trumpet Tony Kadlek – flugelhorn Joe Magnarelli – trumpet Jeff Bush – trombone Dion Tucker – trombone Joe Barati – bass trombone Arthur Latin II – drums, percussion The Honolulu Heartbreakers – vocals
Tour
A Holiday Celebration Tour 2008, is a concert tour with his big band to support the album. The tour was confirmed by the official Harry Connick Jr. website in September 2008.
One of their stops included the annual lighting of the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree.
Tour dates Date City Country Venue North AmericaNovember 18, 2008Louisville, KentuckyUnited StatesPalace TheatreNovember 19, 2008Cincinnati, OhioUnited StatesTaft TheatreNovember 20, 2008Columbus, OhioUnited StatesOhio TheatreNovember 21, 2008Charleston, West VirginiaUnited StatesClay CenterNovember 22, 2008Cleveland, OhioUnited StatesState TheatreNovember 28, 2008New York, New YorkUnited StatesCity Center TheatreNovember 29, 2008December 4, 2008Newark, New JerseyUnited StatesNew Jersey Performing Arts CenterDecember 5, 2008Atlantic City, New JerseyUnited StatesBorgata Event CenterDecember 7, 2008St. Louis, MissouriUnited StatesFox TheatreDecember 9, 2008Minneapolis, MinnesotaUnited StatesOrpheum TheatreDecember 10, 2008Chicago, IllinoisUnited StatesChicago TheatreDecember 11, 2008December 12, 2008Milwaukee, WisconsinUnited StatesRiverside TheaterDecember 14, 2008Nashville, TennesseeUnited StatesRyman AuditoriumDecember 16, 2008Atlanta, GeorgiaUnited StatesCobb Energy Performing Arts CentreDecember 17, 2008Durham, North CarolinaUnited StatesDurham Performing Arts CenterDecember 19, 2008Boston, MassachusettsUnited StatesColonial TheatreDecember 20, 2008December 21, 2008
References
External links Harry Connick Jr.'s official website Harry Connick Jr.'s official Sony BMG Music page