Merry Christmas with Love is Clay Aiken's

Clay Aiken

Clayton Holmes "Clay" Aiken is an American singer, songwriter, actor, producer and author who began his rise to fame on the second season of the television program American Idol in 2003. RCA Records offered him a recording contract, and his multi-platinum debut album Measure of a Man was released...

 first Christmas album, released by RCA Records

RCA Records

RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...

 on November 16, 2004. It was certified platinum and was recognized by 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...

 as the best-selling Christmas/holiday album

Best-selling Christmas/Holiday albums in the United States

This page shows the best-selling Christmas albums in the United States. It includes artists from all over the world, but it only includes sales in the United States of America....

 of 2004 and the best-selling Christian album of 2005.

The album was re-released on August 18, 2009 on the Sony

Sony

, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....

 label.

Aiken has toured four times with his Joyful Noise Tour (2004-2007) to promote this album.

Sales and chart performance

Merry Christmas with Love debuted at number four on the U.S. Billboard 200

Billboard 200

The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...

 chart with about 270,000 copies sold; this was also its peak position on the chart. By the end of 2004, around 1,004,000 copies of the album had been sold, and the album won Billboard awards for the Best-Selling Christmas Album of 2004 and the Best-Selling Christian Album of 2005. The album set a new record for fastest-selling holiday album in the SoundScan

Nielsen SoundScan

Nielsen SoundScan is an information and sales tracking system created by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett. Soundscan is the official method of tracking sales of music and music video products throughout the United States and Canada...

 era (since March 1991) and tied Céline Dion

Celine Dion

Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...

's record for the highest debut by a holiday album in the history of Billboard magazine.

On January 6, 2005, Merry Christmas with Love was certified Platinum

RIAA certification

In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America awards certification based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets. Other countries have similar awards...

 by the Recording Industry Association of America

Recording Industry Association of America

The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...

 for shipments of one million copies in the U.S. Going into the 2010 Christmas

Christmas

Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...

 season, 1,416,000 copies had been sold in the U.S. and 2 million worldwide.

Track listing

1. "O Holy Night
   O Holy Night
   "O Holy Night" is a well-known Christmas carol composed by Adolphe Adam in 1847 to the French poem "Minuit, chrétiens" by Placide Cappeau , a wine merchant and poet, who had been asked by a parish priest to write a Christmas poem...
   
   "
2. "Winter Wonderland
   Winter Wonderland
   "Winter Wonderland" is a winter song, popularly treated as a Christmastime pop standard, written in 1934 by Felix Bernard and Richard B. Smith . Through the decades it has been recorded by over 150 different artists.-History:...
   
   "
3. "Silent Night"
4. Medley: "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
   Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
   “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” is a Christmas carol that first appeared in 1739 in the collection Hymns and Sacred Poems, having been written by Charles Wesley. This is not the version widely known today. A sombre man, Wesley had requested and received slow and solemn music for his lyrics, not the...
   
   "/"O Come All Ye Faithful
   Adeste Fideles
   "Adeste Fideles" is a hymn tune attributed to English hymnist John Francis Wade . The text itself has unclear beginnings, and may have been written in the 13th century by John of Reading, though it has been concluded that Wade was probably the author.The original four verses of the hymn were...
   
   "
5. "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
   Have 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...
   
   "
6. "Mary, Did You Know?
   Mary, Did You Know?
   "Mary, Did You Know?" is a Christmas song and Marian hymn with lyrics written by Mark Lowry and music written by Buddy Greene.-Background:Mark Lowry wrote the words in 1984 "when his pastor asked him to write the program for the living Christmas tree choir presentation. The music was written by...
   
   "
7. "Joy to the World
   Joy to the World
   "Joy to the World" is a Christian Christmas carol.The words are by English hymn writer Isaac Watts, based on Psalm 98 in the Bible. The song was first published in 1719 in Watts' collection; The Psalms of David: Imitated in the language of the New Testament, and applied to the Christian state and...
   
   "
8. "The Christmas Song
   The Christmas Song
   "The Christmas Song" is a classic Christmas song written in 1944 by musician, composer, and vocalist Mel Tormé and Bob Wells. According to Tormé, the song was written during a blistering hot summer...
   
   "
9. "Don't Save It All for Christmas Day
   Don't Save It All for Christmas Day
   "Don't Save It All for Christmas Day" is the third and last single from Céline Dion's album These Are Special Times. The song was issued as a promotional single on December 4, 2000, two years after album's release....
   
   "
10. "Merry Christmas with Love
    Merry Christmas with Love (song)
    "Merry Christmas with Love" is a Christmas song by Greg Wayne Davis and Billy Smiley.The song was first recorded by Sandi Patty, then known as Sandi Patti, for her 1983 Christmas album The Gift Goes On....
    
    "
11. "Sleigh Ride
    Sleigh Ride
    "Sleigh Ride" is a popular light orchestral piece composed by Leroy Anderson. The composer had the original idea for the piece during a heat wave in July 1946; he finished the work in February 1948. Lyrics, about a person who would like to ride in a sleigh on a winter's day with another person,...
    
    "
12. "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?"

Song notes

"O, Holy Night" Written by: Adolphe Adam, John Sullivan Dwight / Produced by: Walter Afanasieff

Walter Afanasieff

Walter Afanasieff is a multiple Grammy-award-winning record producer and songwriter. He is best known for his long association with Mariah Carey, for whom he was producer and co-writer for several years, beginning in 1990...

 - 3:38"Winter Wonderland" Written by: Richard B. Smith, Felix Bernard / Produced by Phil Ramone - 2:49"Silent Night" Written by: Franz Gruber, Joseph Mohr / Produced by: Phil Ramone - 2:17Medley: "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing"/"O Come All Ye Faithful" Written by: Felix Mendelssohn, Charles Wesley /Frederick Oakeley, John Francis Wade / Produced by: Walter Afanasieff

Walter Afanasieff

Walter Afanasieff is a multiple Grammy-award-winning record producer and songwriter. He is best known for his long association with Mariah Carey, for whom he was producer and co-writer for several years, beginning in 1990...

 - 4:00"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" Written by: Hugh Martin, Ralph Blane / Produced by: Phil Ramone - 3:27"Mary Did You Know" Written by: Buddy Greene, Mark Alan Lowry / Produced by: Walter Afanasieff

Walter Afanasieff

Walter Afanasieff is a multiple Grammy-award-winning record producer and songwriter. He is best known for his long association with Mariah Carey, for whom he was producer and co-writer for several years, beginning in 1990...

 - 3:20"Joy to the World" Written by: Isaac Watts, Lowell Mason / Produced by: Phil Ramone - 2:13"The Christmas Song(Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire)" Written by: Melvin Torme, Robert Wells / Produced by: Phil Ramone - 2:36"Don't Save It All for Christmas Day" Written by: Celine Dion, Ric Wake, Peter Zizzo / Produced by: Walter Afanasieff

Walter Afanasieff

Walter Afanasieff is a multiple Grammy-award-winning record producer and songwriter. He is best known for his long association with Mariah Carey, for whom he was producer and co-writer for several years, beginning in 1990...

 - 4:33"Merry Christmas with Love" Written by: Greg Wayne Davis, Billy Lee Smiley / Produced by: Walter Afanasieff

Walter Afanasieff

Walter Afanasieff is a multiple Grammy-award-winning record producer and songwriter. He is best known for his long association with Mariah Carey, for whom he was producer and co-writer for several years, beginning in 1990...

 - 4:04"Sleigh Ride" Written by: Leroy Anderson, Mitchell Parish / Produced by: Phil Ramone - 3:00"What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" Written by: Frank Loesser / Produced by: Phil Ramone - 3:01

Musicians

• Allan Schwartzberg - drums
  Drum kit
  A 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 ....
  
  
• Vinnie Colaiuta - drums
• David Finck - bass
• Nathan East - bass
• Ira Siegel - acoustic guitar
  Steel-string acoustic guitar
  A steel-string acoustic guitar is a modern form of guitar descended from the classical guitar, but strung with steel strings for a brighter, louder sound...
  
  
• Jeff Mironov - guitar
  Guitar
  The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
  
  
• Mike Landau - electric guitar
  Electric guitar
  An 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...
  
  
• Kenny Ascher - piano
  Piano
  The 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...
  
  
• Steve Ferrera - harp
  Harp
  The harp is a multi-stringed instrument which has the plane of its strings positioned perpendicularly to the soundboard. Organologically, it is in the general category of chordophones and has its own sub category . All harps have a neck, resonator and strings...
  
  , percussion
  Percussion instrument
  A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
  
  
• Walter Afanasieff
  Walter Afanasieff
  Walter Afanasieff is a multiple Grammy-award-winning record producer and songwriter. He is best known for his long association with Mariah Carey, for whom he was producer and co-writer for several years, beginning in 1990...
  
   - keyboard
  Keyboard instrument
  A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
  
  
• Conesha Mone't - background vocals
  Singing
  Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
  
  
• Quiana Parler - background vocals
• Jacob Juttrell - background vocals
• Angela Fisher - background vocals
• Michael McElroy
  Michael McElroy (actor)
  Michael McElroy is an American musical theatre actor, singer and music director.Born in Shaker Heights, Ohio, McElroy moved to New York City in May 1990 after earning his BFA in Theatre from Carnegie Mellon University. He made his Broadway debut in The High Rollers Social and Pleasure Club...
  
   - background vocals
• Clarke Anderson - background vocals
• Darryl Phinnesse - background vocals
• The McCrary Choir - background vocals
• Broadway Inspirational Voices - background vocals
  • Kate Chapman - soprano
    Soprano
    A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
    
    
  • Laura Dean - soprano
  • Tanesha Gary - soprano
  • Catrice Joseph-Hart - soprano
  • Gerti Lee James - soprano
  • Bertilla Baker - alto
    Alto
    Alto is a musical term, derived from the Latin word altus, meaning "high" in Italian, that has several possible interpretations.When designating instruments, "alto" frequently refers to a member of an instrumental family that has the second highest range, below that of the treble or soprano. Hence,...
    
    
  • Tracy Nichole Chapman - alto
  • La-Rita Gaskins - alto
  • Lucia Giannetta - alto
  • Danielle Lee Greaves - alto
  • Maurice Lauchner - tenor
    Tenor
    The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
    
    
  • John Eric Parker - tenor
  • Glenn Rainey - tenor
  • Eliseo Roman - tenor
  • Christopher Zelno - tenor

Production

• Andy Zulla - mixing
  Audio mixing (recorded music)
  In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may...
  
  
• Joel Moss - recording
  Sound recording and reproduction
  Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
  
  
• Mark Valentine - additional recording
• Emanuel Kiriakou - engineer
• Joe Wohlmuth - additional engineering
• David Channing - additional engineering
• Jay Spears - assistant engineer
• Mike Schroffel - assistant engineer
• Glenn Pittman - assistant engineer
• Alex Rodriguez - assistant engineer
• Dave Reitzas - lead vocal engineer
• Jorge Calandrelli - arrangement
• Patrick Williams - arrangement
• Rich Davis - production coordination
• Elena Barere - concert master
• Torrie Zito - conductor
  Conducting
  Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
  
  
• William Ross - conductor, arranger
• Humberto Gatica - orchestra engineer
• Sandy Decrescent - orchestra contractor
• David Lowe - orchestra contractor
• Jill Dell'Abate production manager
• Joe Yannece - mastering
  Audio mastering
  Mastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...
  
  

Studios

• Right Track Recording, New York City, NY - recording
  Sound recording and reproduction
  Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
  
  
• Sound Decision, New York City, NY - mixing
  Audio mixing (recorded music)
  In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may...
  
  
• Chalice Studios, Los Angeles, CA - engineering
• Hit Factory, New York - mastering
  Audio mastering
  Mastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...
  
  

Singles

Year	Single	Peak chart positions		Album
		AC Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...	Christian AC Hot Christian Songs Christian Songs is a Billboard chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States....
2004	"Winter Wonderland"	13	-	Merry Christmas with Love
2005	"O Holy Night O Holy Night "O Holy Night" is a well-known Christmas carol composed by Adolphe Adam in 1847 to the French poem "Minuit, chrétiens" by Placide Cappeau , a wine merchant and poet, who had been asked by a parish priest to write a Christmas poem... "	37	-
	"Hark the Herald Angels Sing / O Come All Ye Faithful"	27	-
	"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas Have 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... "	32	-
	"Mary, Did You Know? Mary, Did You Know? "Mary, Did You Know?" is a Christmas song and Marian hymn with lyrics written by Mark Lowry and music written by Buddy Greene.-Background:Mark Lowry wrote the words in 1984 "when his pastor asked him to write the program for the living Christmas tree choir presentation. The music was written by... "	35	32

Tours

2004: The Joyful Noise Tour

• 28-City Holiday concert 2 hour concert (November - December 2004)
• Featured 30 piece orchestras as well as both adult and children's choirs invited from each host city.
• The Joyful Noise Tour's official sponsor was Ronald McDonald House Charities.

2005: The Joyful Noise 2005 Tour

• 36-City, 40-Concert U.S. and Canada tour (November - December 2005)
• The concert featured a traveling cast of actors, singers, and dancers, as well as a supporting cast recruited from each host city, to provide the theatrical component that threaded together the musical performances.
• The opening act and contributing musician was pop-classical pianist William Joseph
  William Joseph (musician)
  William Joseph is a pianist and recording artist from Phoenix, Arizona.William Joseph won, at age 8, a full music scholarship provided by the Boys Club of America, enabling him to study piano with Russian pianist Stella Saperstein....
  
  .

2006: Holiday Tour

• 18-city tour of cities mostly in the eastern U.S. (December 2006)
• Performed with local orchestras, which also opened the concerts with a program of seasonal music.

2007: Christmas in the Heartland

• 21-date eastern U. S. tour began on November 26 in Wichita
  Wichita, Kansas
  Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...
  
  , Kansas
  Kansas
  Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
  
   and ended on December 22, 2007 in Merrillville
  Merrillville, Indiana
  Merrillville is a town in Ross Township, Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 35,246 at the 2010 census. Merrillville is located in the east-central portion of Lake County.-Geography:Merrillville is located at ....
  
  , Indiana
  Indiana
  Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
  
  .
• Local orchestras performed the music.
• Holiday stories submitted and read by fans were spaced throughout the performance as lead in to 4 of the song selections.

Aiken has ended each of his Christmas tours with his signature Christmas song, "Don't Save It All for Christmas Day."

Awards and nominations

Billboard Awards

• 2004: Won - Best Selling Christmas Album - Merry Christmas with Love
• 2005: Won - Best Selling Christian Album - Merry Christmas with Love

American Christian Music Awards

• 2005: Won - Outstanding Yule CD - Merry Christmas with Love