Let There Be Peace on Earth
Encyclopedia
Let There Be Peace on Earth is the first Christmas album from American country music
artist Vince Gill
. It was released in 1993 on MCA Nashville Records. "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," one of the album's tracks, peaked at #54 on the Billboard
Hot Country Singles & Tracks
chart.
Allmusic critic Roch Parisien panned the album, saying, "Christmas music releases have become a country music tradition, but the result is often generic mushy background instrumentation on the same moldy standards. Guilty of this is Vince Gill, whose Let There Be Peace on Earth is as cliche-ridden as they come."
Additional background vocals by the Gene Merlino Singers: Gene Merlino, John Bahler, Dick Bolks, Sally Stevens, Myrna Matthews, Melissa Mackey, Bobbi Page, Amic Byram
String
and vocal arrangement by Marty Paich
.
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
artist Vince Gill
Vince Gill
Vincent Grant "Vince" Gill is an American neotraditional country singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman to the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s, and as a solo artist beginning in 1983, where his talents as a...
. It was released in 1993 on MCA Nashville Records. "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," one of the album's tracks, peaked at #54 on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
Hot Country Singles & Tracks
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...
chart.
Allmusic critic Roch Parisien panned the album, saying, "Christmas music releases have become a country music tradition, but the result is often generic mushy background instrumentation on the same moldy standards. Guilty of this is Vince Gill, whose Let There Be Peace on Earth is as cliche-ridden as they come."
Track listing
- "Do You Hear What I Hear?Do You Hear What I Hear?"Do You Hear What I Hear?" is a Christmas song written in October 1962 with lyrics by Noël Regney and music by Gloria Shayne Baker. The pair were married at the time, and wrote it as a plea for peace during the Cuban Missile Crisis...
" (Noël RegneyNoel RegneyNoël Regney , World War II veteran and French songwriter, composed the Christmas standard "Do You Hear What I Hear?" with his then-wife Gloria Shayne Baker in 1962. Originally from Alsace, France, he moved to New York City and then eventually Connecticut, where he lived out the remainder of his life...
, Gloria Shayne BakerGloria Shayne BakerGloria Shayne Baker was an American composer and songwriter best known for composing the "Do You Hear What I Hear?" Christmas carol in 1962 with her then husband, Noël Regney.-Early life:...
) - 4:39 - "Have Yourself a Merry Little ChristmasHave Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" is a song introduced by Judy Garland in the 1944 MGM musical Meet Me in St. Louis. Frank Sinatra later recorded a version with modified lyrics, which has become more common than the original. The song was written by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane...
" (Ralph BlaneRalph BlaneRalph Blane was an American composer, lyricist, and performer.-Life and career:Born Ralph Uriah Hunsecker in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, Blane was the son of grocery store owners. He attended Tulsa Central High School...
, Hugh MartinHugh MartinHugh Martin was an American musical theater and film composer, arranger, vocal coach, and playwright. He is best known for his score for the 1944 MGM musical Meet Me In St...
) - 4:02 - "One Bright Star (This Christmas Night)" (John Jarvis) - 3:37
- "What Child Is This?What Child Is This?"What Child Is This?" is a popular Christmas carol written in 1865. At the age of twenty-nine, English writer William Chatterton Dix was struck with a sudden near-fatal illness and confined to bedrest for several months, during which he went into a deep depression...
" (William Chatterton Dix) - 3:29 - "Santa Claus Is Coming to TownSanta Claus Is Coming to Town"Santa Claus is Coming to Town" is a Christmas song. It was written by John Frederick Coots and Haven Gillespie, and was first sung on Eddie Cantor's radio show in November 1934....
" (John Frederick Coots, Haven GillespieHaven GillespieJames Lamont "Haven" Gillespie was an American Tin Pan Alley composer and lyricist. He was the writer of "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" as well as "You Go to My Head", "Honey", "By the Sycamore Tree", "That Lucky Old Sun", "Breezin' Along With The Breeze", "Right or Wrong," "Beautiful Love",...
) - 2:37 - "I'll Be Home for Christmas" (Kim Gannon, Walter KentWalter KentWalter Kent was a Jewish American composer who wrote the music for songs including the Christmas standard "I'll Be Home for Christmas", and the wartime hit " The White Cliffs of Dover", co-written with fellow American Nat Burton. He died at the age of 82-External links:...
, Buck RamBuck RamBuck Ram was an American songwriter, and popular music producer and arranger.-Biography:...
) - 4:34 - "Let There Be Peace on EarthLet There Be Peace on Earth (song)"Let There Be Peace on Earth" is a song by Jill Jackson Miller and Sy Miller written in 1955. The song is usually associated with the Christmas season and appears on the album of the same name by country singer Vince Gill...
" (Jill Jackson, Sy Miller) - 4:33- duet with Jenny Gill
- "White ChristmasWhite Christmas (song)"White Christmas" is an Irving Berlin song reminiscing about an old-fashioned Christmas setting. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the version sung by Bing Crosby is the best-selling single of all time, with estimated sales in excess of 50 million copies worldwide.Accounts vary as...
" (Irving BerlinIrving BerlinIrving Berlin was an American composer and lyricist of Jewish heritage, widely considered one of the greatest songwriters in American history.His first hit song, "Alexander's Ragtime Band", became world famous...
) - 4:40 - "Til the Season Comes Around Again" (Randy GoodrumRandy GoodrumRandy Goodrum is an American songwriter. Goodrum has written numerous popular songs, including Anne Murray's #1 hit "You Needed Me" and "Broken Hearted Me" , Michael Johnson's "Bluer Than Blue" , England Dan & John Ford Coley's "It's Sad to Belong" , Steve Perry's "Oh Sherrie" , DeBarge's "Who's...
, Jarvis) - 4:11 - "It Won't Be the Same This Year" (Vince Gill) - 3:43
Personnel
As listed in liner notes.- Bob Bailey — background vocals
- Stuart DuncanStuart DuncanStuart Duncan is a bluegrass musician who plays the fiddle, mandolin, guitar and banjo. Born in Quantico, Virginia and raised in Santa Paula, California, where he played in the school band, he has been a member of the Nashville Bluegrass Band since 1985, and is a much-in-demand session musician...
— fiddleFiddleThe term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music... - Kim Fleming — background vocals
- Steve Gibson — acoustic guitarAcoustic guitarAn acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
, electric guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker... - Vince Gill — vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar
- John HugheyJohn HugheyJohn Hughey was an American musician. He was known for his work as a session pedal steel guitar player for various country music acts, most notably Vince Gill and Conway Twitty...
— steel guitarSteel guitarSteel guitar is a type of guitar or the method of playing the instrument. Developed in Hawaii in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a steel guitar is usually positioned horizontally; strings are plucked with one hand, while the other hand changes the pitch of one or more strings with the use... - John Barlow Jarvis — pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, synthesizerSynthesizerA synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones... - Shane KeisterShane KeisterShane Keister is an American musician. He is known for his work as a studio musician, writer, arranger and producer. He plays synthesizer, piano, Hammond B3, Synclavier, Fairlight, Fender Rhodes, and others.-History:...
— piano, Hammond B-3 organ, synthesizer - Charlie McCoyCharlie McCoyCharles "Charlie" Ray McCoy is an American musician noted for his harmonica playing. In his career, McCoy has backed several notable musicians including Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Tom Astor, Elvis Presley and Ween. He has also recorded thirty-seven studio albums, including fourteen for Monument Records...
— harmonicaHarmonicaThe harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes... - Donna McElroy — background vocals
- Dean ParksDean ParksDean Parks is an American session guitarist and record producer from Ft. Worth, TX.-Albums:Dean was member of The North Texas State One O'clock Lab Band before moving to Los Angeles to work with Sonny and Cher in 1970. Dean is best-known through his many contributions to albums by Steely Dan...
— acoustic guitar, electric guitar - Tom Roady — percussion
- Jamie Robbins — background vocals
- Chris RodriguezChris Rodriguez-Biography:Rodriguez was born on March 7, 1960, in Bronx New York, and moved to Nashville, becoming a veteran of the scene in the early 1990s. His debut album, Beggar's Paradise, was released by Sony in 1999, by which time he had collaborated on projects with country and CCM acts such as Amy Grant,...
— background vocals - Leland SklarLeland SklarLeland "Lee" Bruce Sklar is an American musician, singer-songwriter and film score composer. A prominent bass guitarist, Sklar has contributed to thousands of albums as a session musician...
— bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Carlos Vega — drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
Additional background vocals by the Gene Merlino Singers: Gene Merlino, John Bahler, Dick Bolks, Sally Stevens, Myrna Matthews, Melissa Mackey, Bobbi Page, Amic Byram
String
String section
The string section is the largest body of the standard orchestra and consists of bowed string instruments of the violin family.It normally comprises five sections: the first violins, the second violins, the violas, the cellos, and the double basses...
and vocal arrangement by Marty Paich
Marty Paich
Martin Louis "Marty" Paich was an American pianist, composer, arranger, producer, music director and conductor....
.
Chart performance
| Chart (1993) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums | 3 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 14 |
| U.S. Billboard Top Holiday Albums | 1 |
| Canadian RPM Country Albums | 26 |