Nov. 9, 1964 - On sale today is “The Beach Boys’ Christmas Album,” the seventh studio album by the California rock band the Beach Boys. The Capitol release contains five original songs and seven standards on a Christmas theme.
While leader Brian Wilson produced and arranged the rock songs, he left it to Dick Reynolds — an arranger for the Four Freshmen — to arrange the 41-piece orchestral backings on the traditional songs to which the Beach Boys applied their vocals.
One single was released today along with the album: the original song “The Man with All the Toys,” backed with the group’s rendition of “Blue Christmas.” “Little Saint Nick,” a single which was released last year, was included on the album. All songs except that one were recorded in June.
“The Beach Boys’ Christmas Album” was devised as a response to Phil Spector’s “A Christmas Gift for You from Philles Records (1963), an album Brian Wilson had attended recording sessions for. He played piano on the song “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town” but was dismissed by Spector due to his “substandard” piano playing.
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