7 Christmas albums released by celebrities that you likely forgot about
Many performers have released Christmas albums over the years, including Mariah Carey and Michael Bublé, who are now associated with the holiday season because of theirs.
The likes of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town are among the festive songs that have long been covered. Santa Baby has proved another favourite for acts to cover.
Although a host of acts such as Nat King Cole, Barbra Streisand, Elvis Presley and Justin Bieber have notably released music for the occasion, there are some celebrities whose festive releases may not be as well remembered.
READ MORE: Christmas number one revealed on BBC Radio One after tense battle between Sam Ryder and Wham!
Various celebrities have released albums that marked the holiday season - with some potentially unexpected, others perhaps forgotten about and a few likely still popular among fans. We've taken a look at just a couple of examples. The list includes comedians, actors and a drag queen, who have all brought some festive cheer with music in the past.
Lindsay Lohan glows in ultra rare public appearance with family at Fashion Week
Seth MacFarlane
Seth MacFarlane is among the celebrities who have released festive music (Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images)Seth MacFarlane, 50, is best known for having been behind shows like Family Guy and American Dad!, with him also among the voice cast on them. He's since ventured in the music industry, having now released eight albums since 2011.
He hadn't long begun his music career when he released his second album, Holiday for Swing, in 2014. It got to Number 51 on the Billboard 200 in the US, which remains his highest place on that chart. The album doesn't appear to have charted in the UK upon its release almost a decade ago.
The festive album includes covers of songs like Let It Snow, I'll Be Home for Christmas, Mele Kalikimaka and Everybody's Waiting for the Man with the Bag. Norah Jones and Sara Bareilles each joined Seth for a duet on the album too.
Rosie O'Donnell
Rosie O'Donnell released a Christmas album, that featured other celebrities, earlier in her career (Getty Images for Friendly House)Rosie O'Donnell, 61, is best known as a comedian, actor and talk show host, having worked on films like The Flintstones (1994). She however decided to release a Christmas album back in 1999 and was joined by some other celebrities.
A Rosie Christmas is understood to have peaked at Number 20 on the Billboard 200 in the US at the time, but it doesn't appear to have charted in the UK. Rosie featured on most of the tracks included on the album in some capacity.
She was joined though by the likes of Cher, Gloria Estefan, Lauryn Hill, Elton John and even Sesame Street character Elmo. The album primarily consisted of covers, including of the songs White Christmas and Do You Hear What I Hear.
RuPaul
RuPaul has released a few Christmas albums, including Ho Ho Ho (CBS via Getty Images)RuPaul, 63, is best known as a drag queen and is the face of RuPaul's Drag Race, which began in 2009. Over the course of his career, he's released numerous albums, including four festive ones such as Ho Ho Ho, which was released in 1997.
His third album, it marked the first time that RuPaul had released Christmas music. Unlike some of his other albums, it doesn't appear to have charted on the Billboard 200 in the US upon its release more than two decades ago.
The album features covers and original songs, with examples of the former including All Alone on Christmas and I Saw Daddy Kissing Santa Claus. There's also a duet with Michelle Visage and new material included the song Christmas Nite.
David Hasselhoff
David Hasselhoff's festive album came out almost two decades ago (FilmMagic)Although best known for his roles on shows like Baywatch, actor David Hasselhoff, 71, has also released music over the years. Some of his albums have charted abroad, though one that didn't perform as well was his debut Christmas album.
Vanessa Feltz 'discovered ex Ben Ofoedu was cheating on Christmas Day'
The album, titled The Night Before Christmas, was released back in 2004, with it reportedly only available in Europe initially. It contained covers of festive songs such as Joy to the World, God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman and Feliz Navidad.
It's doesn't seem to have charted in the UK, though it's been suggested that it did feature on the charts in Australia. And it's understood to be his only Christmas album to date, though he's released more than a dozen albums overall.
Zooey Deschanel
Zooey Deschanel has released festive music through the duo She & Him, which she's a part of with M. Ward (CBS via Getty Images)Zooey Deschanel, 43, is best known for her acting career, having starred in films like Elf (2003) before leading the cast of the FOX sitcom New Girl. She has released music over the years too, including as part of the duo She & Him, which she's a member of alongside fellow musician M. Ward.
Their third album, A Very She & Him Christmas, featured festive covers and was released in 2011. It's said to have peaked at Number 12 on the Billboard 200 in the US and reportedly topped genre-specific charts at the time too.
It featured renditions of songs like The Christmas Waltz, Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree and Blue Christmas. Other covers on the album included Baby, It's Cold Outside and a subsequent deluxe version included Last Christmas.
Regis Philbin
The late Regis Philbin tried his hand at releasing a Christmas album almost two decades ago (ABC via Getty Images)The late Regis Philbin is best remembered as a presenter, having fronted Live with Kathie Lee Gifford, before working alongside Kelly Ripa on the talk show. Regis - who died in 2020, aged 88- released a few albums during his career too.
It included the Regis Philbin Christmas Album, which came out in 2005. The album peaked at Number 83 on the Billboard 200 chart in the US. It reportedly appeared in the charts in the UK too, though lower than position 100.
The album includes Regis' renditions of songs such as Baby It's Cold Outside, I'll Be Home For Christmas and Winter Wonderland. Donald Trump even features on the album, in the song Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.
Christopher Lee
The late Christopher Lee released some festive music around a decade ago (WireImage)The late Christopher Lee is known for his acting career, including having played Saruman in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and Count Dooku in the Star Wars franchise. Later in life though, he released music in the heavy metal genre.
The actor - who passed away in 2015, aged 93 - unveiled his debut festive release, titled A Heavy Metal Christmas, in 2012. It contained his unconventional rendition of the song the Little Drummer Boy, as well as his version of Silent Night.
He followed-up with A Heavy Metal Christmas Too, which was released the following year, and then Darkest Carols, Faithful Sing in 2014. Christopher is even said to have been the oldest living performer to enter the Billboard charts with his song Jingle Hell, which was released in around 2013.
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
