ALABAMA - CHRISTMAS IN DIXIE

CHRISTMAS IN DIXIE

ALABAMA

SONGWRITERS: JEFF COOK; TEDDY GENTRY; RANDY OWEN & MARK HERNDON

COUNTRY: U. S. A.

ALBUM: ALABAMA CHRISTMAS

LABEL: RCA NASHVILLE

GENRE: CHRISTMAS SONG

YEAR: 1985

 

             Alabama is an American country and Southern rock band formed in Fort Payne, Alabama, in 1969. The band was founded by Randy Owen (lead vocals, rhythm guitar) and his cousin Teddy Gentry (bass, backing vocals). They were soon joined by another cousin, Jeff Cook (lead guitar, fiddle, and keyboards). First operating under the name Wildcountry, the group toured the Southeast bar circuit in the early 1970s, and began writing original songs. They changed their name to Alabama in 1977 and following the chart success of two singles, were approached by RCA Records for a record deal.

                  Alabama's biggest success came in the 1980s, where the band had over 27 number one hits, seven multi-platinum albums and received numerous awards. Alabama's first single on RCA Records, "Tennessee River", began a streak of 21 number one singles, including "Love in the First Degree" (1981), "Mountain Music" (1982), "Dixieland Delight" (1983), "If You're Gonna Play in Texas (You Gotta Have a Fiddle in the Band)" (1984) and "Song of the South" (1988). The band's popularity waned slightly in the 1990s although they continued to produce hit singles and multi-platinum album sales. Alabama disbanded in 2004 following a farewell tour and two albums of inspirational music but reunited in 2010 and have continued to record and tour worldwide.

               The band's blend of traditional country music and Southern rock combined with elements of bluegrass, folk, gospel and pop music gave it a crossover appeal that helped lead to their success. They also toured extensively and incorporated production elements such as lighting and "sets" inspired by rock concerts into their shows. The band has over 41 number one country records on the Billboard charts to their credit and have sold over 75 million records, making them the most successful band in country music history. AllMusic credited the band with popularizing the idea of a country band and wrote that "It's unlikely that any other country group will be able to surpass the success of Alabama."

               Alabama was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2019 and were awarded with the first ever Life Time Achievement Award from this institution.

           "Christmas in Dixie" is a song by American country band Alabama. It was released as a single in December 1982 from the RCA Records compilation album A Country Christmas. The Christmas song celebrates the holiday in the southern United States. This song was included on Alabama's first Christmas album released in 1985 (titled Alabama Christmas), and has since been included on many Christmas compilations in both the country and all-genre music fields. In 2017, Alabama updated the song by re-recording the unplugged version of it for their third Christmas album titled American Christmas which celebrated its 35th anniversary when they first released the song in 1982.

By now in New York City.

There's snow on the ground.

And out in California.

The sunshines' falling down.

And maybe down in Memphis, Graceland's all in lights.

And in Atlanta, Georgia, there's peace on earth tonight.

 

Christmas in Dixie, it's snowing in the pines.

Merry Christmas from Dixie to everyone tonight.

 

It's windy in Chicago.

The kids are out of school.

There's magic in Motown.

The city's on the move.

In Jackson, Mississippi to Charlotte, Caroline.

And all across the Nation, it's a peaceful Christmas time.

 

Christmas in Dixie, it's snowing in the pines.

Merry Christmas from Dixie, to everyone tonight.

And from Fort Payne, Alabama.

 

[Spoken:]

God bless you all, We love ya,

Happy New Year, Good night, Merry Christmas.

Merry Christmas tonight...