Christmas Island is Jimmy Buffett's first Christmas album and is his twenty-first studio album overall. It features covers of popular Christmas songs in Buffett's musical stylings as well as two tracks which Buffett wrote for the album. "Twas the Night Before Christmas" is a hidden track. It was his last release with MCA Records.
Critical reception Reviews tend to be mixed for the album. In a positive review, a reviewer states that "Christmas Island will have you on your feet all through the holidays." Rob O'Connor states that "this may not be the traditional Christmas fare of chestnuts roasting on an open fire, but for those who enjoy ocean breezes and 'wasting away' to this most successful beach bum, Christmas Island is exactly what the cruise director ordered." Thom Owens presents a more negative view of the album, describing Buffett as being "relaxed and entertaining" even though, "few of his new Christmas songs are remarkable and his rearrangements of classic carols are rather forced." However, several tracks remain very popular around the Christmas season. "Ho Ho Ho & a Bottle of Rum" was the track chosen to be played live for promoting the album when first released, and seems to remain the most popular off the album. Although no singles were released, "Jingle Bells", "Mele Kalikimaka", "Ho Ho Ho & a Bottle of Rhum", "Merry Christmas, Alabama (Never Far from Home)" and the title track get considerable amount of radio airplay during the season.
Track listing
Personnel Adapted from AllMusic.
Vocals and musicians
Jimmy Buffett – lead vocals, guitar; backing vocals (uncertain) Melanie Prestidge – backing vocals Claudia Cummings – backing vocals Tina Gullickson – backing vocals Nadirah Shakoor – backing vocals Robert Greenidge – steelpan, percussion Roger Guth – drums Ralph MacDonald – percussion Jim Mayer – bass, upright bass Peter Mayer – backing vocals, guitar, ukulele Tom Mitchell – saxophone Greg "Fingers" Taylor – harmonica Michael Utley – keyboards
Production and design
Alvin Booth – photography Jimmy Buffett – arranger Milton Dean – photography Rob Eaton – engineer, Audio mixing|mixing Joe Hayden – second engineer Abi Hodes – photography Ted Jensen – mastering Russ Kunkel – producer Joe Lizzi – second engineer John Lovell – horn arrangements Tom Mitchell – horn arrangements Jean Pagliuso – photography Michael Ramos – production coordination Sunshine Smith – coordination Michael Utley – arrangements, producer, string arrangements Brad Wilson – photography
Charts
Weekly charts Chart (1996–97) Peak position
Year-end charts Chart (1997) Position US Billboard 200 183
References