Deemed by Brothers Four leader Bob Flick himself as one of his favorite recordings released by the long-lived folk group, 1966 s Merry Christmas brought together a truly extraordinary collection of talent. Besides the Brothers themselves arguably one of the top five groups of the folk era the album featured vocal arrangements by the legendary Milt Okun, who had worked with such giants as Harry Belafonte, the Chad Mitchell Trio and Peter, Paul and Mary. Orchestrations were provided by Peter Matz, fresh from his work with Barbra Streisand, and behind the board at Columbia Records hallowed 30th Street Studio was renowned engineer Frank Laico. And weaving it all together was the great producer Teo Macero, best known for his work with Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck and Tony Bennett! Little wonder, then, that Merry Christmas is acknowledged as a pop-folk classic, here reissued in an Expanded Edition including the Brothers 1961 single Christmas Bells b/w What Child Is This plus two unreleased tracks, Go Tell It on the Mountain, and a completely different take on God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen. With notes by folk guru Tom Pickles featuring quotes from all four Brothers, added photos and a beautiful remastering job by Maria Triana at Sony s Battery Studios in New York, this Real Gone release of Merry Christmas will make your holiday merry indeed.
B**N
Terrific ! Came as expected.
Terrific ! Came as expected.
H**E
good people to buy from
good delivery , the cd was used but in perfect condition. l love it !
D**N
Merry Christmas to Us!
It is hard to beat the Brothers Four with their beautiful harmony. This is great music to wrap presents by and sing along. I fell in love with these guys 50 years ago and can't believe I took so long to get this album.
C**L
Time trip worth the journey
My wife and I are great fans of the Brothers Four and expected to be pleased with the cd we had not heard before. Track 10 was worth the cost of the cd. Always was and always will be fans of theirs.
N**N
The Brothers Four still sound great!
I loved listening to the music of this old group who were frat brothers at the U of Washington. They performed for my school when I was at Lake Washington HS in the early 60's and one of them is my neighbor now.
R**S
Not to be misses Cd of a wonderful Christmas album as only the Brothers Four could do
A True CLASSIC!!! Not to be missed Cd of a wonderful Christmas album as only the Brothers Four could do! Snatch it up and enjoy the nostalgic feeling the music emotes in musical splendor!!
S**S
and am just so happy to finally have it
I have been wanting that CD for AGES, and am just so happy to finally have it. I was so happy to hear "Borning Day" again that I actually had tears in my eyes.....
M**K
Good holiday mood...
Listening to it puts me into a good holiday mood...
P**S
Mellow sixties folk music
At one point in 1961, the Brothers Four were the second most popular folk group in America, with only the Kingston Trio ahead of them. At that point, they released their first Christmas-themed singe (Christmas bells / What child is this). It didn't chart, but they recorded two more sides (God rest ye merry, gentlemen / Go tell It on the mountain) in 1964. Those four tracks are included here as bonus tracks.In 1966, the Brothers Four recorded an entire Christmas album of 12 tracks, leading off with a new recording of God rest ye merry gentlemen. Many of the songs will be familiar to you, although performed in the group's own style. However, there are some less obvious songs including The night is Christmas Eve (a Spanish song). Christmas is a-coming (of English origin, but they probably heard Harry Belafonte's version, as they admit to being fans of his music) and The borning day.This is an excellent album of mellow Christmas music.
B**I
Five Stars
Excellent!
R**9
BEST CHRISTMAS ALBUM EVER!
As a kid, there were 3 main Christmas Records played continuously from the 15th of December to December 27th. This has always been my favorite Christmas album of all time. I have the vinyl copy at home as my parents off loaded their vinyl many years ago. It is well worn. I have been looking for this on CD for years and now it is available. Took me about 30 seconds to order this when I saw it. Absolutely beautiful harmony and some songs I have never heard on any other Christmas albums. This one comes with extra songs! Can it get any better that that! My other 2 favorites were Nat King Cole and Bing Crosby- the standards just about everyone has or knows about. Believe me when I say that the Brothers Four Merry Christmas is one everyone should have. In my opinion, the "BEST CHRISTMAS ALBUM EVER!"
R**N
Four Stars
Just like I remember from Childhood, only without the scratches and skips!
S**.
I love it
Wonderful Christmas Atmosphere!
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