Merry Funkin' Christmas! - The Second Disc

Merry Funkin’ Christmas!

Harry Weinger promised its release to us in our interview with him a few months back, and here it is: James Brown’s The Complete James Brown Christmas is the world-premiere release of all three of JB’s holiday LPs on CD, all on one package, from Hip-o Select.

James Brown loved Christmas so much, he recorded three Yuletide albums in four years (not nearly a surprise given The Hardest Working Man in Show Business’ lightning-fast album output at the time). Some of the tracks from these albums were holiday standards played to perfection by The Famous Flames (“Please Come Home for Christmas,” the immortal “Christmas Song”) – but most of them were in fact the usual mind-bending funk offerings from JB and The Flames – which at this point boasted the likes of Maceo Parker, Alfred “Pee Wee” Ellis, Clyde “Funky Drummer” Stubblefield and the relatively new trombonist Fred Wesley, who’d lead The J.B.’s, the ’70s incarnation of the band – with a unique holiday twist. Tunes like “Santa Claus Go Straight to the Ghetto,” “Let’s Unite the Whole World at Christmas” and “Santa Claus is Definitely Here to Stay” are classic, inimitable Brown, celebrating the season and its values of charity, respect and fun with a dash of activism. (It’s that spirit that put “Say It Loud – I’m Black and I’m Proud,” a Top 10 hit from earlier in the year, on the Soulful Christmas LP.)

There have been quite a few J.B. Christmas compilations on the market before. Rhino, back when they were an indie label, did Santa’s Got a Brand New Bag (Rhino 70194) in 1988, which sort of set the template for future compilations of the material (including the most recent one, an entry in Universal’s 20th Century Masters series from 2003). But this new collection is the CD debut for quite a bit of this material, making it quite the gift for catalogue enthusiasts. The set is rounded out with a clutch of non-LP mixes and versions, which had previously appeared on Volumes 5 and 7 of Select’s ongoing J.B. singles series.

Kick-off your holiday celebration early by pre-ordering this set here, and hit the jump for the full scoop on the tracks!

James Brown, The Complete James Brown Christmas (Hip-o Select/Polydor, 2010)

Disc 1: Christmas Songs and Soulful Christmas

Let’s Make Christmas Mean Something This Year
Sweet Little Baby Boy (Parts 1 & 2)
Merry Christmas, I Love You
Signs of Christmas
The Christmas Song (Version 2)
Merry Christmas Baby
The Christmas Song (Version 1)
Please Come Home for Christmas
This is My Lonely Christmas (Part 1)
This is My Lonely Christmas (Part 2)
Christmas in Heaven
Santa Claus Go Straight to the Ghetto
Santa Claus, Santa Claus
Believers Shall Enjoy (Non Believers Shall Suffer)
Soulful Christmas
Tit for Tat (Ain’t No Taking Back)
Christmas is Coming
Say It Loud – I’m Black and I’m Proud (Parts 1 & 2)
In the Middle
Let’s Unite the Whole World at Christmas
You Know It
Santa Claus Gave Me a Brand New Start

Disc 2: Hey America! and Single Masters

Hey America
A Lonely Little Boy Around One Little Christmas Toy
Go Power at Christmas Time
Christmas is Love
Santa Claus is Definitely Here to Stay
My Rapp
I’m Your Christmas Friend, Don’t Be Hungry
Merry Christmas My Baby and a Very, Very Happy New Year
It’s Christmas Time (Part 1)
It’s Christmas Time (Part 2)
You Know It (Single Version)
Believers Shall Enjoy (Non Believers Shall Suffer) (Single Version)
Hey America (Sing-Along Version)
Santa Claus is Definitely Here to Stay (Single Version)
Santa Claus is Definitely Here to Stay (Sing-Along Version)

Disc 1, Tracks 1-11 from James Brown and His Famous Flames Sing Christmas Songs – King 1010, 1966
Disc 1, Tracks 12-22 from A Soulful Christmas – King 1040, 1968
Disc 2, Tracks 1-8 from Hey America! – King 1124, 1970
Disc 2, Tracks 9-10 released as King single 6277, 1969
Disc 2, Track 11 from King single 6203, 1968
Disc 2, Track 12 from King single 6204, 1968
Disc 2, Track 13 from King single 6339, 1970
Disc 2, Tracks 14-15 released as King single 6340, 1970

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Mike Duquette

Mike Duquette (Founder) was fascinated with catalog music ever since he was a teenager. A 2009 graduate of Seton Hall University with a B.A. in journalism, Mike paired his profession with his passion through The Second Disc, one of the first sites to focus on all reissue labels great and small. His passion for reissues turned into a career, having written at and worked for all three major catalogue music labels and contributing to Allmusic, Billboard, Discogs, City Pages and Ultimate Classic Rock. He's penned liner notes for Verve, Chess, Mondo and Soul Music Records.

Born and raised in New Jersey, Mike lives in Astoria, Queens with his wife, a cat named Ravioli, twin daughters and a large yet tasteful collection of music.