Donny Hathaway - This Christmas (ATCO Records 1970)

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"This Christmas" is a song by American soul musician Donny Hathaway released in 1970 by Atco Records. The song gained renewed interest when it was included in 1991 on Atco Records' revised edition of their 1968 Soul Christmas compilation album and has since become a modern Christmas standard, with the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers reporting that it was the 30th most-performed holiday song of all time.

Phil Upchurch said the song was "absolutely the premiere holiday song written by an African American". It was written by Hathaway and Nadine McKinnor.

"This Christmas" was recorded at Audio Finishers Studio on Ontario Street, Chicago in the fall of 1970. Ric Powell said that Hathaway was "very upbeat during the session" and that he "knew what he wanted to do musically and the impact he wanted to make with this song" regarding the representation of African Americans in Christmas music. On writing the song with Hathaway (who died in 1979), Nadine McKinnor said she felt "blessed to have written with Donny a song that celebrates the possibilities, the expectations, and the anticipation of Christmas and the good fun and happy loving times", and that the creation of the song "was a God plan. God was in this plan. And Donny Hathaway was a genius."

"This Christmas" was released as a single in 1970, where it saw little success, charting only once on any of Billboard magazine's weekly published music charts. It made Billboard's special Christmas Singles chart on the week of December 23, 1972, peaking at No. 11. In 1991, Atco Records released a revised edition of their 1968 compilation album Soul Christmas that included "This Christmas".

Donny Edward Hathaway (October 1, 1945 – January 13, 1979) was an American soul singer, keyboardist, songwriter, and arranger. Hathaway signed with Atlantic Records in 1969 and with his first single for the Atco label, "The Ghetto", in early 1970, Rolling Stone magazine "marked him as a major new force in soul music." His enduring songs include "The Ghetto", "This Christmas", "Someday We'll All Be Free", "Little Ghetto Boy", "I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know", signature versions of "A Song for You", "For All We Know", "Where Is the Love" and "The Closer I Get to You", two of many collaborations with Roberta Flack. "Where Is the Love" won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals in 1973. At the height of his career, Hathaway was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. On January 13, 1979, Hathaway's body was found outside the luxury hotel Essex House in New York City; his death was ruled a suicide.

Hang all the mistletoe
I'm gonna get to know you better
This Christmas
And as we trim the tree
How much fun it's gonna be together
This Christmas

Fireside is blazing bright
We're caroling through the night
And this Christmas will be
A very special Christmas for me

Presents and cards are here
My world is filled with cheer, and you
This Christmas
And as I look around
Your eyes outshine the town, they do
This Christmas

Fireside is blazing bright
We're caroling through the night
And this Christmas will be
A very special Christmas for me

Shake a hand, shake a hand now

The fireside is blazing bright
We're caroling through the night
And this Christmas will be
A very special Christmas for me

Merry Christmas
Shake a hand, shake a hand now
Wish your brother "Merry Christmas"
All over the land now
Yea, Merry Christmas
Merry Merry Christmas
Hey, hey, hey yea
Merry Merry Christmas