A Very Special Season
A Very Special Season | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | ||||
Studio album by Diana Ross | ||||
Released | November 14, 1994 | |||
Genre |
| |||
Length | 56:22 | |||
Label | EMI | |||
Producer | Nick Martinelli | |||
Diana Ross chronology | ||||
|
A Very Special Season is the twentieth studio album and first holiday album by American singer Diana Ross, released on November 14, 1994, by EMI Records. Produced by Nick Martinelli, whom Ross worked with several times around the early nineties, it is a lush, soulful pop album, consisting mostly of traditional Christmas standards as well as takes on more contemporary songs by Burt Bacharach, John Lennon, and Stevie Wonder. The set was only released for the international market where it peaked at number 37 on the UK Albums Chart and was certified Gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).[2]
The album was remastered and repackaged as Wonderful Christmas Time in 2018. The re-titled re-issue of the album, issued by Ross' own label Ross Records, featured new cover art and the six-tracks that Ross had originally recorded for the 1994 Hallmark album, Making Spirits Bright, featuring the London Symphony Orchestra.[3] Ross promoted the release with performances in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, and at the Rockefeller Center Tree-lighting concert special in November 2018.
Critical reception
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Allmusic editor Jose F. Promis found that A Very Special Season "easily ranks among the diva's best of the '90s. Instead of opting for hip arrangements aimed at pleasing a younger, jaded audience, all the songs on this set are classically arranged with lush orchestrations, resulting in a truly timeless holiday album, not unlike what one would have expected from the crooners and sirens of yesteryear. The songs are all lovingly produced, and Ross effectively wraps her silken pipes around each tune with utmost sincerity."[1]
Track listing
All songs produced by Nick Martinelli.[1]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Winter Wonderland" | 3:22 | |
2. | "White Christmas" | Irving Berlin | 3:20 |
3. | "Wonderful Christmastime" | Paul McCartney | 3:09 |
4. | "What the World Needs Now" | 4:20 | |
5. | "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" | 3:15 | |
6. | "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" | 2:14 | |
7. | "Amazing Grace" | John Newton | 5:21 |
8. | "His Eye Is on the Sparrow" | Civilla D. Martin | 5:21 |
9. | "Silent Night" |
| 5:01 |
10. | "Overjoyed" | Stevie Wonder | 4:05 |
11. | "O Holy Night" | 4:44 | |
12. | "Someday at Christmas" |
| 4:09 |
13. | "Ave Maria" | Franz Schubert | 5:52 |
14. | "The Christmas Song" |
| 3:13 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Wonderful Christmastime" | McCartney | 3:09 |
2. | "Sleigh Ride"/"Jingle Bells" | 3:40 | |
3. | "Winter Wonderland" |
| 3:22 |
4. | "It's Christmas Time" | Traditional | 3:18 |
5. | "White Christmas" | Berlin | 3:20 |
6. | "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" |
| 2:14 |
7. | "The Christmas Song" |
| 3:13 |
8. | "Overjoyed" | Wonder | 4:05 |
9. | "Someday at Christmas" |
| 4:09 |
10. | "What the World Needs Now" |
| 4:20 |
11. | "Amazing Grace" | Newton | 5:21 |
12. | "His Eye Is on the Sparrow" | Martin | 5:21 |
13. | "Silent Night" |
| 5:01 |
14. | "O Holy Night" |
| 4:44 |
15. | "O Little Town of Bethlehem" | Phillips Brooks | 4:25 |
16. | "Ave Maria" | Schubert | 5:52 |
17. | "Go Tell It on the Mountain" | John Wesley Work Jr. | 5:08 |
18. | "The First Noël" | Traditional | 3:30 |
19. | "I Heard the Bells" | Traditional | 2:53 |
20. | "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" |
| 3:15 |
Charts
Chart (1994) | Peak position |
---|---|
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[4] | 93 |
UK Albums (OCC)[5] | 37 |
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI)[2] | Gold | 100,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
References
- ^ a b c d e Promis, Jose F. "Review". Allmusic. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
- ^ a b "British album certifications – Diana Ross – A Very Special Season". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
- ^ a b "Wonderful Christmas Time". iTunes. Apple (US). Retrieved November 1, 2020.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Diana Ross – A Very Special Season" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
- ^ "Diana Ross | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
- v
- t
- e
- Diana Ross (1970)
- Everything Is Everything (1970)
- Surrender (1971)
- Touch Me in the Morning (1973)
- Diana & Marvin (1973)
- Last Time I Saw Him (1973)
- Diana Ross (1976)
- Baby It's Me (1977)
- Ross (1978)
- The Boss (1979)
- Diana (1980)
- Why Do Fools Fall in Love (1981)
- Silk Electric (1982)
- Ross (1983)
- Swept Away (1984)
- Eaten Alive (1985)
- Red Hot Rhythm & Blues (1987)
- Workin' Overtime (1989)
- The Force Behind the Power (1991)
- A Very Special Season (1994)
- Take Me Higher (1995)
- Every Day Is a New Day (1999)
- Blue (2006)
- I Love You (2006)
- Diana Ross Sings Songs from The Wiz (rec. 1978, rel. 2015)
- Thank You (2021)
- Greatest Hits (1972)
- Diana Ross' Greatest Hits (1976)
- 20 Golden Greats (1979)
- To Love Again (1981)
- All the Great Hits (1981)
- Forever Diana: Musical Memoirs (1993)
- One Woman: The Ultimate Collection (1993)
- Diana Extended: The Remixes (1994)
- Voice of Love (1996)
- Love & Life: The Very Best of Diana Ross (2001)
- The Definitive Collection (2006)
- The Greatest (2011)
- Upside Down: The Collection (2012)
- Supertonic: Mixes (2020)
- Live at Caesars Palace (1974)
- An Evening with Diana Ross (1977)
- Greatest Hits Live (1989)
- Stolen Moments: The Lady Sings... Jazz and Blues (1993)
- Christmas in Vienna (1993)
- Diana! (1971)
- Lady Sings the Blues (1972)
- Mahogany (1975)
- The Wiz (1978)
- Endless Love (1981)
- Live in Central Park (2012)
- Paris 1968: Broadcast Archives (2013)
- "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)"
- "Ain't No Mountain High Enough"
- "Remember Me"
- "Reach Out (I'll Be There)"
- "Surrender"
- "I'm Still Waiting"
- "Good Morning Heartache"
- "Touch Me in the Morning"
- "You're a Special Part of Me"
- "Last Time I Saw Him"
- "My Mistake (Was to Love You)"
- "You Are Everything"
- "Don't Knock My Love"
- "Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)"
- "Theme from Mahogany (Do You Know Where You're Going To)"
- "Love Hangover"
- "Gettin' Ready for Love"
- "Your Love Is So Good for Me"
- "You Got It"
- "Lovin', Livin' and Givin'"
- "Ease on Down the Road"
- "Pops, We Love You (A Tribute to Father)"
- "What You Gave Me"
- "The Boss"
- "It's My House"
- "Upside Down"
- "I'm Coming Out"
- "My Old Piano"
- "It's My Turn"
- "Endless Love"
- "Why Do Fools Fall in Love"
- "Mirror, Mirror"
- "Work That Body"
- "Muscles"
- "So Close"
- "Pieces of Ice"
- "All of You"
- "Swept Away"
- "Touch by Touch"
- "Missing You"
- "Eaten Alive"
- "Chain Reaction"
- "Experience"
- "Dirty Looks"
- "If We Hold On Together"
- "Workin' Overtime"
- "This House" / "Paradise"
- "When You Tell Me That You Love Me"
- "Someday We'll Be Together"
- "Take Me Higher"
- "I Will Survive"
- "Not Over You Yet"
- "Goin' Back"
- "I've Got a Crush on You"
- "Thank You"
- "If the World Just Danced"
- "Turn Up the Sunshine"
- "A Brand New Day"
- "We Are the World"
- Super Bowl XXX halftime show (1996)
- Return to Love Tour (2000)
- I Love You Tour (2006–2008)
- More Today Than Yesterday: The Greatest Hits Tour (2010–2012)
- In the Name of Love Tour (2013–2017)
- The Essential Diana Ross: Some Memories Never Fade (2015–2017)
- The Supremes
- Rhonda Ross Kendrick (daughter)
- Tracee Ellis Ross (daughter)
- Evan Ross (son)
- Arne Næss Jr. (second husband)
- Arthur "T-Boy" Ross (brother)
- Diana Ross Playground
- Diana Ross Presents The Jackson 5
Category