Notable Renderings
On 24 December 1906, Reginald Fessenden, a Canadian inventor, broadcast the first AM radio program, which started with a phonograph record of Handel's aria "Ombra mai fu" followed by Fessenden playing "O Holy Night" on the violin and singing the final verse. The carol therefore was the second piece of music to be broadcast on radio.
Tenor Enrico Caruso recorded a version in 1916 which is still in print today.
Mireille Mathieu and Roger Mathieu (her father) sang this song together on her Chante Noël 1968 album, which was re-released as a CD in 2004 with three additional songs.
Al Green sang a version on his LP The Christmas Album in 1983
Luciano Pavarotti's title record was his first to officially be awarded at Platinum disc in 1984. Although Wendy Carlos' Switched on Bach had acheived that in 1969 before RIAA instituted the award in 1976.
David Foster arranged and produced the song successfully for several different artists including Michael Crawford, whose rendering in the 1993 TV special The David Foster Christmas Album was also featured on Foster's best-selling corresponding album (No. 48 Billboard Top 200 in 1993) as well as Crawford's own A Christmas Album (No. 98 Billboard Top 200 in 1999); the Trans-Siberian Orchestra's platinum-selling DVD The Ghosts of Christmas Eve (1999); Michelle Williams in Destiny's Child 2001 album 8 Days of Christmas; Celine Dion's rendering was voted most popular in a 2004 poll and featured on her 5x platinum album These Are Special Times; Josh Groban (No. 1 Billboard Adult Contemporary in 2002); Andrea Bocelli for his 2009 double platinum My Christmas album,; and most recently by Jackie Evancho for her 2010 EP O Holy Night.
Four country music artists have charted on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts with renderings of "O Holy Night": John Berry charted at No. 55 in 1996 and No. 63 in 1998; Martina McBride's rendering charted on five separate occasions, peaking at No. 74 in 1997, No. 67 in 1998, No. 49 in 1999, No. 57 in 2000, and No. 41 in 2001; Josh Gracin's at No. 59 in 2006.; and Edens Edge's at No. 59 in 2012.
Mariah Carey recorded the song for her 1994 album Merry Christmas, and a live version of it is included on her second Christmas album, Merry Christmas II You (2010).
Plus One recorded the song and it released on their 2002 album Christmas.
Whitney Houston recorded a version for her 2003 album One Wish.
In 2009, Iranian composer/pianist, Fariborz Lachini, arranged a solo piano version of the song on his Christmas Piano album.
2010: In December 2010, Norwegian band Röyksopp featured an instrumental electronic music version of the song on their website under the French title "Le Cantique de Noël".
- On their debut 2010 LP, King Night, Michigan and Chicago-based band Salem extensively sampled it in the opening track of the same name.
- The cast of Glee, featuring Lea Michele, recorded the song on Glee: The Music, The Christmas Album (2010).
- The Indigo Girls recorded a bluegrass version of the song for their seasonal album Holly Happy Days.
2011: It was recorded by Joe McElderry and Rolando Villazón for McElderry's third studio album, Classic Christmas.
- Richard Marx recorded his version for his The Christmas EP.
2012: Cascada recorded their version and released it as part of their Christmas album, It's Christmas Time.
- 2011 American Idol winner, country artist Scotty McCreery released his own version of the song on his Christmas album, Christmas with Scotty McCreery.
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Famous quotes containing the words notable and/or renderings:
“In one notable instance, where the United States Army and a hundred years of persuasion failed, a highway has succeeded. The Seminole Indians surrendered to the Tamiami Trail. From the Everglades the remnants of this race emerged, soon after the trail was built, to set up their palm-thatched villages along the road and to hoist tribal flags as a lure to passing motorists.”
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“The mastery of one’s phonemes may be compared to the violinist’s mastery of fingering. The violin string lends itself to a continuous gradation of tones, but the musician learns the discrete intervals at which to stop the string in order to play the conventional notes. We sound our phonemes like poor violinists, approximating each time to a fancied norm, and we receive our neighbor’s renderings indulgently, mentally rectifying the more glaring inaccuracies.”
—W.V. Quine (b. 1908)