Ultimate Christmas is a 1998 seasonal compilation of music by The Beach Boys

The Beach Boys

The Beach Boys are an American rock band, formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California. The group was initially composed of brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, The Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in 1962...

 released on Capitol Records

Capitol Records

Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...

. It rounds up all of the tracks from 1964's The Beach Boys' Christmas Album

The Beach Boys' Christmas Album

- The Musicians :* Al Jardine - guitar, vocals* Mike Love - vocals* Brian Wilson - bass guitar, vocals* Carl Wilson - guitar, vocals* Dennis Wilson - drums, vocals- Orchestra :...

, including alternate versions of its lead single, "Little Saint Nick

Little Saint Nick

"Little Saint Nick" is a Christmas song written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love and originally performed by their group The Beach Boys. It was first released as a single in December 1963, reaching number three on the Billboard Christmas charts and peaking at #69 on the regular weekly sales chart...

", while also including the extremely rare 1974 holiday single, "Child of Winter (Christmas Song)". In addition, there are a handful of unreleased tracks from the aborted Merry Christmas from the Beach Boys album in 1977, some of which were revised to be included on M.I.U. Album

M.I.U. Album

M.I.U. Album is the 22nd studio album by The Beach Boys, released in 1978. Recorded at a fraught time for the band, only Mike Love, Al Jardine, and Brian Wilson appear throughout the album. Carl and Dennis Wilson are audible on only a few of the songs....

the following year.

As a collection of the Beach Boys' Christmas tunes, Ultimate Christmas manages to round up virtually every song the band recorded and released on the subject. In 2004 Capitol took it out of print and replaced it with Christmas with the Beach Boys, essentially the same compilation with new cover art and one song ("Christmas Time Is Here Again") removed from the tracklist.

Track listing

1. "Little Saint Nick
   Little Saint Nick
   "Little Saint Nick" is a Christmas song written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love and originally performed by their group The Beach Boys. It was first released as a single in December 1963, reaching number three on the Billboard Christmas charts and peaking at #69 on the regular weekly sales chart...
   
   " (Brian Wilson
   Brian Wilson
   Brian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
   
   /Mike Love
   Mike Love
   Michael Edward "Mike" Love is an American singer/songwriter and musician with The Beach Boys. He was a founding member of the band along with his cousins Brian, Carl, and Dennis Wilson, and their friend Al Jardine, and continues to perform with the band to the present day...
   
   ) – 2:01
   • Features Mike Love on lead vocals
   • Album version; different mix from the 1963 mono single
2. "The Man with All the Toys
   The Man with All the Toys
   "The Man with All the Toys" is a Christmas song written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love for the American rock band The Beach Boys. It was released on their 1964 album The Beach Boys' Christmas Album. As a single that year it had limited success "The Man with All the Toys" is a Christmas song written...
   
   " (Brian Wilson/Mike Love) – 1:32
   • Features Brian Wilson and Mike Love on lead vocals
3. "Santa's Beard" (Brian Wilson/Mike Love) – 2:00
   • Features Mike Love on lead vocals
4. "Merry Christmas, Baby" (Brian Wilson) – 2:21
   • Features Mike Love on lead vocals
5. "Christmas Day" (Brian Wilson) – 1:47
   • Features Al Jardine on lead vocals
6. "Frosty the Snowman
   Frosty the Snowman
   "Frosty the Snowman" is a popular song written by Walter "Jack" Rollins and Steve Nelson, and first recorded by Gene Autry and the Cass County Boys in 1950. It was written after the success of Autry's recording of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" the previous year; Rollins and Nelson shipped the...
   
   " (including the frosty the snowman handjive)(Steve Nelson/Jack Rollins) – 1:54
   • Features Brian Wilson on lead vocals
7. "We Three Kings of Orient Are" (John Henry Hopkins) – 4:03
   • Features Brian Wilson and Mike Love on lead vocals
8. "Blue Christmas
   Blue Christmas
   "Blue Christmas" is a Christmas song written by Billy Hayes and Jay W. Johnson. The heart-broken tale of unrequited love during the holidays had long been considered a Christmas staple of country music, having been recorded first by Doye O'Dell in 1948 and popularised by Ernest Tubb the next year...
   
   " (Billy Hayes/Jay W. Johnson) – 3:09
   • Features Brian Wilson on lead vocals
9. "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town
   Santa 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....
   
   " (J. Fred Coots/Haven Gillespie) – 2:20
   • Features Brian Wilson and Mike Love on lead vocals
10. "White Christmas
    White Christmas
    A white Christmas refers to the presence of snow on Christmas Day. This phenomenon is most common in the northern countries of the Northern Hemisphere...
    
    " (Irving Berlin
    Irving Berlin
    Irving 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...
    
    ) – 2:29
    • Features Brian Wilson on lead vocals
11. "I'll Be Home for Christmas" (Kim Gannon/Walter Kent/Buck Ram) – 2:44
    • Features Brian Wilson on lead vovals
12. "Auld Lang Syne
    Auld Lang Syne
    "Auld Lang Syne" is a Scots poem written by Robert Burns in 1788 and set to the tune of a traditional folk song . It is well known in many countries, especially in the English-speaking world; its traditional use being to celebrate the start of the New Year at the stroke of midnight...
    
    " (Trad. Arr. Brian Wilson) – 1:19
    • Features Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Carl Wilson, Al Jardine and Dennis Wilson on lead vocals
    • Above 12 tracks originally released as The Beach Boys' Christmas Album
      The Beach Boys' Christmas Album
      - The Musicians :* Al Jardine - guitar, vocals* Mike Love - vocals* Brian Wilson - bass guitar, vocals* Carl Wilson - guitar, vocals* Dennis Wilson - drums, vocals- Orchestra :...
      
       in 1964
13. "Little Saint Nick" (Single version) (Brian Wilson/Mike Love) – 2:08
    • Features Mike Love on lead vocals
14. "Auld Lang Syne" (Alternate mix) (Trad. Arr. Brian Wilson) – 1:23
    • Features Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Carl Wilson, Al Jardine and Dennis Wilson on lead vocals
15. "Little Saint Nick" (Alternate version) (Brian Wilson/Mike Love) – 2:04
    • Features Brian Wilson and Mike Love on lead vocals
    • Utilizes the melody and backing track from All Summer Long
      All Summer Long
      All Summer Long is the sixth studio album by The Beach Boys and their second in 1964. Recorded in the aftermath of the British Invasion, spearheaded by The Beatles, the album marked a major turning point in The Beach Boys' career, and in leader/prime songwriter Brian Wilson as an artist.All Summer...
      
      's "Drive-In"
16. "Child of Winter (Christmas Song)
    Child of Winter
    "Child of Winter " is a Christmas song written by Brian Wilson and Stephen Kalinich ....
    
    " (Brian Wilson/Stephen Kalinich) – 2:49
    • Features Brian Wilson and Mike Love on lead vocals
    • 1974 single-only release
17. "Santa's Got An Airplane" (Alan Jardine/Brian Wilson/Mike Love) – 3:09
    • Features Mike Love and Al Jardine on lead vocals
    • Released as "Loop De Loop (Flip Flop Flyin' In An Aeroplane)" on Endless Harmony Soundtrack
      Endless Harmony Soundtrack
      Endless Harmony Soundtrack is an anthology album of previously unheard material by The Beach Boys, originally released by Capitol Records in August 1998. Named for Bruce Johnston's song on the 1980 album Keepin' the Summer Alive, it was designed as a tie-in with the band's biographical documentary...
      
      in 1998, and again in 2000
18. "Christmas Time Is Here Again" (Buddy Holly
    Buddy Holly
    Charles Hardin Holley , known professionally as Buddy Holly, was an American singer-songwriter and a pioneer of rock and roll...
    
    /Norman Petty/Jerry Allison/new lyrics by Al Jardine) – 3:02
    • Features Al Jardine on lead vocals
    • Revised and released as "Peggy Sue" on M.I.U. Album
      M.I.U. Album
      M.I.U. Album is the 22nd studio album by The Beach Boys, released in 1978. Recorded at a fraught time for the band, only Mike Love, Al Jardine, and Brian Wilson appear throughout the album. Carl and Dennis Wilson are audible on only a few of the songs....
      
       in 1978
19. "Winter Symphony" (Brian Wilson) – 3:00
    • Features Brian Wilson on lead vocals
20. "(I Saw Santa) Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" (Brian Wilson/Al Jardine) – 2:23
    • Features Al, Matt and Adam Jardine on lead vocals
21. "Melekalikimaka" (aka "Kona Christmas") (Alan Jardine/Mike Love) – 2:34
    • Features Mike Love and Al Jardine on lead vocals
    • Revised and released as "Kona Coast" on M.I.U. Album in 1978
22. "Bells of Christmas" (Alan Jardine/Ron Altbach/Mike Love) – 2:44
    • Features Mike Love on lead vocals
    • Revised and released as "Belles Of Paris" on M.I.U. Album
      M.I.U. Album
      M.I.U. Album is the 22nd studio album by The Beach Boys, released in 1978. Recorded at a fraught time for the band, only Mike Love, Al Jardine, and Brian Wilson appear throughout the album. Carl and Dennis Wilson are audible on only a few of the songs....
      
       in 1978
23. "Morning Christmas" (Dennis Wilson) – 3:22
    • Features Dennis Wilson on lead vocals
24. "Toy Drive Public Service Announcement" – 1:23
    • Recorded in 1977
25. "Dennis Wilson Christmas Message" – 0:31
    • Recorded in 1977
26. "Brian Wilson Christmas Interview" – 2:35
    • Recorded in 1964

Ultimate Christmas (Capitol 72434 95734 2 0) never charted in the US or the UK.

Sources

• Ultimate Christmas CD booklet notes, Brad Elliott, c.1998.

• Allmusic.com