Duck the Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas

Duck the Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas is the first full-length Christmas album from the cast of A&E reality television series Duck Dynasty, released October 29, 2013, via UMG Nashville.[1][2]

Duck the Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas
Studio album by
ReleasedOctober 29, 2013 (2013-10-29)
GenreChristmas
LabelUMG Nashville
ProducerBuddy Cannon

Background

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The announcement of the album came on June 10, 2013, in the Music City Center during the CMA Music Festival in Nashville, Tennessee. It was revealed that Buddy Cannon is producing the album, and that it features the family's "special brand of Southern, down-home sense of humor."[3] CEO of Duck Commander, Willie Robertson, was quoted as saying, "Christmas is an important holiday for us not only because of our strong faith but also our holiday family traditions. We're having a great time making this album. We hope you enjoy it."[1]

Recording

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The album features a number of traditional seasonal songs as well as originals written and performed by the Robertsons. Special guests include country stars Luke Bryan, George Strait, Josh Turner and Alison Krauss.[4]

Release

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Walmart released an exclusive 'ZinePak deluxe edition of Duck the Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas. The limited-edition package features the full-length album, plus one additional bonus track ("Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy"), as well as a 64-page magazine with exclusive family interviews, photos, fun facts, holiday recipes, scented Christmas ornament, and gift-tag stickers.[5] Walmart let voters decide between the choice of three covers which one will be on the special release.[6]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Country WeeklyB+[7]
GotCountryOnline     [8]
Confront Magazine     [9]
Montreal Gazette     [10]

Duck the Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas garnered mostly positive reception from music critics. Tammy Ragusa of Country Weekly gave the album a B+ rating and states: "If you're a big fan of the Robertson family from the hit A&E reality series Duck Dynasty (i.e., you buy every piece of merch bearing Willie's or Uncle Si's photo or the expression "Happy, Happy, Happy"), then get your wallet out. You're not going to want to go through this holiday season without Duck the Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas.[7] Writing for Roughstock, Matt Bjorke adds: "It may come off as a bit of a novelty album people who don't follow the program but that doesn't mean it's not a well-made album, which Duck the Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas most definitely is."[11] Daryl Addison of Great American Country writes: "Duck the Halls is a friendly celebration of the season that will have fans of Duck Dynasty asking for seconds."[12]

Commercial performance

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The album debuted at number four on the Billboard 200 chart and number one on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart, selling 69,000 copies in its first week of release. The album was behind another holiday album, Kelly Clarkson's Wrapped in Red, which debuted at number three with 70,000 copies.[13] In its second week of release, Duck the Halls remained at number one on the Top Country Albums chart, seeing a slight sales increase to 73,000 copies.[14] The album was certified Platinum by the RIAA on December 11, 2013,[15] and it became the second best-selling Christmas album of 2013 with 745,000 copies sold in the US.[16] As of December 2014, Duck the Halls has sold 807,000 copies in the United States.[17]

Track listing

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Source:[2][18]

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Ragin' Cajun Redneck Christmas" (Willie Robertson)Willie Robertson, Dallas Davidson3:27
2."I'll Be Home for Christmas" (Missy Robertson)Walter Kent, Kim Gannon, Buck Ram3:50
3."You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" (Si Robertson)Theodor S. Geisel, Albert Hague3:04
4."Christmas Cookies" (Phil Robertson and George Strait with Miss Kay)Aaron Barker3:18
5."Away in a Manger" (Sadie Robertson with Alison Krauss, Luke 2: 8-14 Scripture Reading by Mia)Traditional4:03
6."Hairy Christmas" (Willie Robertson and Luke Bryan with Phil, Uncle Si, Jase, Jep)Chancie Neal, Jimmy Melton, Michael Mobley3:30
7."Baby, It's Cold Outside" (Missy and Jase Robertson)Frank Loesser3:45
8."Duck the Halls" (Robertson Family)Buddy Cannon, Willie Robertson, Jase Robertson, Korie Robertson, Missy Robertson2:29
9."Camouflage And Christmas Lights" (Reed Robertson)Michael Logen, Andrew Dorff3:29
10."Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" (Sadie Robertson and Robertson kids with Uncle Si)Johnny Marks2:41
11."The Night Before Christmas" (Si Robertson)Willie Robertson3:41
12."Why I Love Christmas" (Missy Robertson with Josh Turner)Josh Turner3:32
13."Silent Night" (Robertson family)Traditional4:19
14."Phil's Prayer, Willie's Closing" 1:10
Walmart exclusive edition (bonus track)[19]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy"Buck Owens, Don Rich 

Personnel

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Credits adapted from AllMusic[20]

Additional musicians
  • David Angell — strings
  • Monisa Angell — strings
  • Sam Bacco — percussion
  • Wyatt Beard — background vocals
  • Jim "Moose" Brown — piano
  • Pat Buchanan — electric guitar
  • Buddy Cannon — background vocals
  • Melonie Cannon — background vocals
  • Tony Castle — piano
  • Jim Chapman — background vocals
  • Janet Darnall — strings
  • David Davidson — strings
  • Beverly Drukker — strings
  • Dan Dugmore — electric guitar, baritone guitar, steel guitar
  • Conni Ellisor — violin
  • Kevin "Swine" Grantt — bass guitar
  • James Grosjean — strings
  • Steve Herman — trumpet
  • Steve Hinson — electric guitar, steel guitar
  • Jim Horn — flute
  • Jon Mark Ivey — background vocals
  • Shane Keister — piano, synthesizer
  • Elizabeth Lamb — strings
  • Paul Leimdrums
  • Jim Lotz — bassoon
  • Randy McCormick — clavinet, Hammond B3, piano, synthesizer
  • Liana Manis — background vocals
  • Anthony La Marchina — strings
  • Jon Mark — background vocals
  • The Nashville String Machine — strings
  • Daniel O'Lannerghty — bass guitar
  • Mary Kathryn Van Osdale — strings
  • Carole Rabinowitz — strings
  • Mickey Raphaelharmonica
  • John Wesley Ryles — background vocals
  • Joe Scaife — percussion
  • Lisa Silver — background vocals
  • Pamela Sixfin — strings
  • Kira Small — background vocals
  • Denis Solee — clarinet
  • Joe Spivey — fiddle
  • Bobby Terry — acoustic guitar
  • Dan Tyminski — acoustic guitar, mandolin
  • Alan Umstead — strings
  • Catherine Umstead — strings
  • Bruce Wethey — strings
  • Bergen White — piano, background vocals
  • Kristin Wilkinson — strings
  • John Willis — acoustic guitar, electric guitar, gut string guitar
  • Lonnie Wilson — drums
  • Karen Winkelmann — strings
  • Cindy Wyatt — harp

Charts and certifications

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Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[31] Gold 40,000^
United States (RIAA)[32] Platinum 807,000[17]

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ a b "'Duck Dynasty' Family to Release Christmas Album". Yahoo! Music. 10 June 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  2. ^ a b "Duck The Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas: Music". Amazon. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  3. ^ Stark, Phyllis (10 June 2013). "Duck the Halls CMA Music Festival's day three highlights". MSN. Archived from the original on 13 June 2013. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
  4. ^ Weber, Katherine (October 1, 2013). "'Duck Dynasty' Christmas Album to Feature Country Stars Luke Bryan, George Strait (Promo VIDEO)". The Christian Post. Retrieved October 3, 2013.
  5. ^ "Duck The Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas 'ZinePak". Walmart.com. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  6. ^ "Walmart on Facebook". Facebook. 11 September 2013. Retrieved 13 September 2013.
  7. ^ a b Ragusa, Tammy (November 12, 2013). "Duck the Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas". Country Weekly. Retrieved December 16, 2013.
  8. ^ Toro, Tara (October 31, 2013). "ALBUM REVIEW: Duck The Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas". GotCountryOnline. Archived from the original on February 26, 2014. Retrieved December 16, 2013.
  9. ^ Vosburgh, Kelsie (November 10, 2013), Review:Duck the Halls - A Robertson Family Christmas, archived from the original on November 10, 2013, retrieved December 16, 2013{{citation}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  10. ^ O'Meara, Jamie (December 17, 2013), Christmas album reviews: From Kelly Clarkson to Duck Dynasty, Montreal Gazette, retrieved December 17, 2013
  11. ^ Bjorke, Matt (18 November 2013). "Album Review: Duck Dynasty's "Duck The Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas"". Roughstock. Archived from the original on 4 December 2013. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  12. ^ Addison, Daryl (24 November 2013). "GAC Album Review: Duck The Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas". Great American Country. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  13. ^ Caulfield, Keith (6 November 2013). "Arcade Fire's 'Reflektor' Debuts At No. 1 On Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved 6 November 2013.
  14. ^ Bjorke, Matt (13 November 2013). "Country Album Chart News: The Week of November 13, 2013: Duck Dynasty's The Robertson Family Stay at #1 Album With "Duck The Halls" Christmas Recording". Roughstock. Archived from the original on 13 November 2013. Retrieved 13 November 2013.
  15. ^ "Gold & Platinum". Recording Industry Association of America.
  16. ^ Paul Grein (January 2, 2014). "Chart Watch: The Top 10 Christmas Albums of 2013". Yahoo Music.
  17. ^ a b Bjorke, Matt (December 24, 2014). "Country Album Chart Report For December 24, 2014". Roughstock. Retrieved December 24, 2014. sales figures given here
  18. ^ "DUCK THE HALLS: A ROBERTSON FAMILY CHRISTMAS RELEASES SOON!". UMG Nashville. Retrieved 23 December 2014.
  19. ^ "Duck The Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas (Walmart Exclusive)". Walmart.com. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  20. ^ "Duck the Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas - Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved January 23, 2016.
  21. ^ "The Robertsons Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard.
  22. ^ "The Robertsons Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  23. ^ "The Robertsons Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard.
  24. ^ "The Robertsons Album & Song Chart History". Billboard Top Holiday Albums for The Robertsons. Prometheus Global Media.
  25. ^ "Billboard 200 Albums: Year-End top-selling albums across all genres". Billboard. 2 January 2013.
  26. ^ "Top Country Albums: 2013 Year-End Charts". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2 January 2013. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  27. ^ "Top Canadian Albums: 2014 Year-End Charts". Billboard. Retrieved January 15, 2015.
  28. ^ "Billboard 200 Albums: Year-End top-selling albums across all genres". Billboard. 2 January 2013.
  29. ^ "Top Country Albums: 2014 Year-End Charts". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2 January 2013. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  30. ^ "Decade-End Charts: Billboard 200". Billboard. 31 October 2019. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
  31. ^ "Canadian album certifications – The Robertson Family – Duck the Halls". Music Canada.
  32. ^ "American album certifications – The Robertsons – Duck the Halls". Recording Industry Association of America.
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