A Christmas Album is the fifth studio album and the first Christmas album by Christian music singer Amy Grant. The album was recorded in nine studios in mid-1983 and was released later that same year.

It was issued on the heels of Grant's immensely successful 1982 LP Age to Age. Primarily for the audiences she attracted with Age to Age, A Christmas Album features well-known sacred and secular standards alongside original songs, and tracks from this album continue to receive airplay to this day during the holiday season on both secular and Christian radio stations. Although not as successful as Age to Age, A Christmas Album still peaked in the Top Ten of the Christian chart and spawned a Top 20 Christian radio single in "Emmanuel." The album would eventually be certified Gold in 1985, and Platinum in 1989.^[2] A Christmas Album was listed at No. 40 in the 2001 book, CCM Presents: The 100 Greatest Albums in Christian Music. In 2016, Grant re-recorded the song "Tennessee Christmas" as the opening track of her Christmas album of the same name. The song was released as a single from the album and charted at No. 50 on the Billboard Hot Christian Songs chart in December 2016.^[3]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Tennessee Christmas"	Amy Grant, Gary Chapman	4:33
2.	"Hark! The Herald Angels Sing"	William H. Cummings, Felix Mendelssohn, Charles Wesley	2:53
3.	"Preiset Dem Konig! (Praise the King!)"	Shane Keister	1:39
4.	"Emmanuel"	Michael W. Smith	2:54
5.	"Little Town (new melody to O Little Town of Bethlehem)"	Phillips Brooks (words), Chris Eaton (music)	2:47
6.	"Christmas Hymn"	Grant, Smith	2:32
7.	"Love Has Come"	Grant, Keister, Smith	4:02
8.	"Sleigh Ride"	Leroy Anderson, Mitchell Parish	3:35
9.	"The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On an Open Fire)"	Mel Tormé, Robert Wells	3:45
10.	"Heirlooms"	Grant, Bannister, Bob Farrell	3:42
11.	"A Mighty Fortress/Angels We Have Heard On High"	Traditional	5:00

Personnel

Amy Grant – lead vocals (1, 2, 4–11), backing vocals (1)
Shane Keister – Fender Rhodes (1), Yamaha GS1 (2, 3, 5, 8), Oberheim OB-8 (3, 4, 5, 8), Memorymoog (4), Minimoog (4), acoustic piano (7, 9, 10)
Michael W. Smith – acoustic piano (2, 5, 6), Yamaha GS1 (4), Yamaha GS2 (7, 8), vocoder (10)
Gary Chapman – acoustic guitar (1), pedal steel guitar (1), backing vocals (1)
Jon Goin – electric guitar (1), acoustic guitar (2), guitar (4, 5, 7–10)
Dean Parks – acoustic guitar (1)
Mike Brignardello – bass (1, 2, 4, 5, 7–10)
Paul Leim – drums (1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10), LinnDrum (4), Simmons drums (4), sleigh bells (5, 8), wood blocks (8)
Victor Feldman – shaker (1), percussion (2, 5, 6)
Lenny Castro – percussion (4)
Farrell Morris – percussion (7, 9), bell tree (8), glockenspiel (8), coconut shells (8)
Alan Moore – string arrangements (1, 2, 5–11), choir arrangements (2, 6, 11), horn arrangements (2, 5, 6, 11), woodwind arrangements (2, 6, 8, 10)
Gavyn Wright – concertmaster (1, 2, 5–11)
The Martyn Ford Orchestra – strings (1, 2, 5–11), horns (2), woodwinds (2, 8, 10)
The Nashville Contemporary Brass Quintet – horns (5, 6, 11)
Tom McAninch – horns (5, 6, 11)
Fred Bock – choir director (2, 6, 11)
The Hollywood Presbyterian Choir – choir (2, 6, 11)
Bill Champlin – backing vocals (4, 11)
Tamara Champlin – backing vocals (4, 11)
Carmen Twillie – backing vocals (4, 11)
Steve George – backing vocals (5)
David Page – backing vocals (5)
Richard Page – backing vocals (5)
Debbie Hall – backing vocals (8, 9)
Sandy Hall – backing vocals (8, 9)
Edie Lehmann – backing vocals (8, 9)

Production

Jim Baird – additional engineer
Brown Bannister – producer
Michael Blanton – cover art concept, executive producer
Mike Borum – family photography
Kevin Burns – assistant engineer
Gary Chapman – executive producer
Ken Corlew – additional engineer
Gene Eichelberger – additional engineer
Bill Farrell – cover photography, scenery
Steve Ford – assistant engineer
Daniel Garcia – assistant engineer
Amy Grant – liner notes
Dan Harrell – cover art concept, executive producer
Dennis Hill – art direction
Brent King – additional engineer
Jerry Mahler – assistant engineer
Rich Markowitz – assistant engineer
Jack Joseph Puig – engineer, mixing
Mike Ross – additional engineer
Doug Sax – mastering at The Mastering Lab, Hollywood, California
David Schober – assistant engineer

Chart positions

Year	Chart	Position
1984	Top Contemporary Christian	9
1985	Top Holiday Albums	5
1991	Top Pop Catalog	5

Awards

GMA Dove Awards

Year	Winner	Category
1984	A Christmas Album	Recorded Music Packaging of the Year

Pressings

A Christmas Album was the first Amy Grant album to be released in the Compact Disc format. The original CD issue had a manufacturing flaw that caused a small, but noticeable jump during the transition between tracks 3 and 4. The remastered version does not have this defect. The album was also released as a promotional only vinyl picture disc version in a die cut sleeve.

References

^ https://www.allmusic.com/album/r132965
^ "RIAA searchable certification database: Amy Grant". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
^ "Amy Grant Chart History". Billboard.

v t e Amy Grant
Discography Awards and nominations
Studio albums	Amy Grant My Father's Eyes Never Alone Age to Age Straight Ahead Unguarded Lead Me On Heart in Motion House of Love Behind the Eyes Legacy... Hymns and Faith Simple Things Rock of Ages... Hymns and Faith Somewhere Down the Road How Mercy Looks from Here
Christmas albums	A Christmas Album The Animals' Christmas (with Art Garfunkel) Home for Christmas A Christmas to Remember Tennessee Christmas
Compilation albums	The Collection Her Greatest Inspirational Songs Greatest Hits 1986–2004 Greatest Hits The Christmas Collection In Motion: The Remixes Be Still and Know... Hymns & Faith
Live albums	In Concert In Concert Volume Two Time Again... Amy Grant Live
Singles/EPs	"El Shaddai" Ageless Medley (EP) "Angels" "Find a Way" "Everywhere I Go" "Wise Up" "Stay for Awhile" "The Next Time I Fall" "Saved by Love" "Lead Me On" "1974 (We Were Young)" "What About the Love" "Say Once More" "Faithless Heart" "Baby Baby" "Hope Set High" "Every Heartbeat" "That's What Love Is For" "Good for Me" "I Will Remember You" "Grown-Up Christmas List" "Let the Season Take Wing" "Lucky One" "House of Love" "Say You'll Be Mine" "Big Yellow Taxi" "Oh How the Years Go By" "Takes a Little Time" "She Colors My Day" "Better Than a Hallelujah"
Television	Three Wishes
Related articles	Vince Gill Gary Chapman