A Very Gaga Holiday

A Very Gaga Holiday is a live EP released by Lady Gaga, containing songs performed on the ABC holiday television special A Very Gaga Thanksgiving. It was made available for purchase in the United States on November 22, 2011, exclusively on the iTunes Store and Amazon, and on November 26 in the rest of the world. The EP is made up of jazz covers of the songs "Orange Colored Sky" and "White Christmas", the latter featuring an extra verse added by Gaga herself, and acoustic versions of "You and I" and "The Edge of Glory", both songs originally from the singer's second studio album, Born This Way (2011). A recurring theme on the EP is Gaga stopping midway through singing to talk about background information on the songs with her listeners.

Not to be confused with A Very Gaga Thanksgiving.
A Very Gaga Holiday
EP by
Lady Gaga
ReleasedNovember 22, 2011 (2011-11-22)
RecordedOctober 2011
VenueConvent of the Sacred Heart
(New York City, New York)
GenreJazz pop
Length14:21
Label
Lady Gaga chronology
Born This Way: The Collection
(2011)		 A Very Gaga Holiday
(2011)		 Artpop
(2013)

Following its release, A Very Gaga Holiday received mixed reviews from music critics. Reviewer Stephen Thomas Erlewine, writing for Allmusic, listed "White Christmas" and "Orange Colored Sky" as highlights. A Very Gaga Holiday entered the album charts of Canada, France, and the United States, while "White Christmas" entered the single charts of Belgium, Japan, and the United Kingdom.

Background and recording

Gaga covered "Orange Colored Sky" during a surprise appearance at The Oak Room in New York City on September 29, 2010, and again on January 5, 2011.[1] Brian Newman served as a guest performer on trumpet for performances at the Robin Hood Gala on May 9, 2011, to benefit the Robin Hood Foundation, and at BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend in Carlisle, England on May 15, 2011.[2] Gaga later performed it on the ABC Christmas special A Very Gaga Thanksgiving,[3] along with a cover version of "White Christmas". Gaga put emphasis on the jazz side of the song. She added a second verse, describing the original song as "too short". In the verse, Gaga describes a snowman, saying that Santa Claus is on his way to meet him. The lyrics end with Gaga saying, "Okay, so I suppose it's not very white outside yet."[4] The songs on A Very Gaga Holiday were recorded during the shooting of A Very Gaga Thanksgiving at the Convent of the Sacred Heart, New York City.[5]

On November 22, 2011, A Very Gaga Holiday was released as a digital EP. Both "Orange Colored Sky" and "White Christmas" were included in the release, along with two other tracks which were also performed: minimalist versions of Gaga's 2011 singles "The Edge of Glory" and "You and I", both songs which originally featured on Gaga's second studio album, Born This Way.[6] Interscope Records announced the release after the opening of the Holiday Wonderland Gaga Workshop at Barneys New York.[4] It was released in the United States to the iTunes Store and Amazon and had a worldwide release to iTunes after four days.[6][7]

Composition

Gaga's cover of "White Christmas" is a "jazzy rendition" and features an extra verse about a snowman.[8] Halfway into the cover, before beginning the new verse, Gaga says, "So as you can tell, I'm very outgoing and a little bit shy, but I've decided that this song is just too short. It's such a beautiful Christmas song but it's only one verse, so I added an extra one."[9] "You and I" is devoid of the musical arrangements from the version in Born This Way, and features instrumentation from a piano and a trumpet, which is played halfway through the song. From time to time, Gaga shouts the word "America" while singing the song.[10][11] Her acoustic version of "The Edge of Glory" begins with a monologue, explaining her dedication of the song to her grandfather: "It's the second Thanksgiving I'm spending without my grandpa, and I wrote this song about him, so here it is. So Grandma, if you're watching at home, this one's for you."[4] Following the first chorus, Gaga stops playing her piano and tells a story about Italian cookies. A recurring theme for the songs is Gaga stopping midway through singing to engage in conversation with the listeners.[12]

Release and reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[13]
Entertainment WeeklyPositive[14]
Evigshed MagazinePositive[15]

In the United States, the EP debuted at number 52 on the Billboard 200 with sales of 22,000 copies, for the week ending December 10, 2011.[16][17] The same week, the special also affected Gaga's second studio album, Born This Way, which moved up the Billboard 200 chart from position 72 to 21, with sales of 47,000 copies (up 416% from previous week).[17] As of April 2016, A Very Gaga Holiday has sold 44,000 copies in the US according to Nielsen SoundScan.[18] Gaga's version of "White Christmas" entered the UK Singles Chart at number 87, for the week ending December 3, 2011.[19] The same version also entered the Belgium (Flanders) Singles Chart at number 86, for the week ending dated December 24, 2011,[20] and the Japan Hot 100 singles at number 93.[21] In Canada, A Very Gaga Holiday debuted at number 74 on the Canadian Albums Chart[22] and in France, it entered the SNEP Download Albums Chart at number 26.[23]

Stephen Thomas Erlewine from AllMusic awarded the EP three out of five stars, saying that the release was an "attractive holiday bauble" and that although Gaga's main persona was about authenticity, she appeared to "push her affectations" much more than required on the songs. Erlewine picked "White Christmas" and "Orange Colored Sky" as his top choices from the EP.[13] Evigshed Magazine's Sylvia Lesas complimented the musical arrangement of the tracks, saying that Gaga's vocals were a highlight of the EP and adding, "'The Edge of Glory' featuring beautiful piano line gives me chills. It is a truly moving version. [Gaga] makes every song special."[15] Erin Strecker from Entertainment Weekly gave a glowing review of the release, explaining that Gaga's fans might have been expecting a release like A Very Gaga Holiday which gave prominence to the singer's vocals. She added that the songs showed "how much her voice really is well-suited for the big-band and jazz-era stylings on these tunes".[14]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."White Christmas"Irving Berlin3:22
2."Orange Colored Sky"
2:33
3."You and I"Lady Gaga3:34
4."The Edge of Glory"
4:52
Total length:14:21

Personnel

Credits and personnel adapted from digital booklet.[5]

Charts

Release history
Country Date Format Label Ref.
United States November 22, 2011 Digital download Interscope Records [6]
Worldwide November 26, 2011 [4]

References
  1. Perpetua, Matthew (January 6, 2011). "Lady GaGa performs at the Oak Room". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on September 19, 2011. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
  2. Sexton, Paul (January 6, 2011). "Lady Gaga Sings Jazz Standards During Surprise N.Y. Set". Billboard. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
  3. Dinh, James (November 24, 2011). "Lady Gaga Gets Crafty In Thanksgiving Special Preview". MTV. MTV Networks. Archived from the original on November 24, 2011. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
  4. Newport, David (November 22, 2011). "Lady Gaga's 'A Very Gaga Holiday': Listen To 'White Christmas' And More". Idolator. Buzz Media. Archived from the original on November 24, 2011. Retrieved November 24, 2011.
  5. A Very Gaga Holiday (Media notes). Lady Gaga. Convent of the Sacred Heart, New York City. 2011. p. 3. ASIN B006CUI7UW.CS1 maint: others (link)
  6. "A Very Gaga Holiday (Live) – EP by Lady GaGa". iTunes Store. November 22, 2011. Retrieved November 24, 2011.
  7. Greenwald, David (November 23, 2011). "Lady Gaga Releases Holiday EP". Billboard. Archived from the original on March 29, 2013. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
  8. Hogan, Marc (November 23, 2011). "Lady Gaga Is Totally Feeling the Holiday Spirit". Spin. Archived from the original on November 25, 2011. Retrieved November 23, 2011.
  9. "Lady Gaga's cover of 'White Christmas' emerges online – audio". NME. November 23, 2011. Archived from the original on November 26, 2011. Retrieved November 23, 2011.
  10. Wong, Sterling (November 25, 2011). "A Very Gaga Thanksgiving' Recap: Lady Gaga Makes Crafts At Her Elementary School, Previews Video For New Single". MTV News. Viacom. Retrieved March 8, 2014.
  11. Perpetua, Matthew (November 11, 2011). "Lady Gaga: 'You and I' from 'Gaga Thanksgiving'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 29, 2012. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
  12. Itzkoff, David (November 25, 2011). "10 Things That Really Happened on 'A Very Gaga Thanksgiving". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved March 8, 2014.
  13. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (November 22, 2011). "A Very Gaga Holiday > Review". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Archived from the original on April 2, 2014. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
  14. Strecker, Erin (November 23, 2011). "Lady Gaga announces release of surprise holiday EP: Hear a new track here". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on December 25, 2013. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
  15. Lesas, Sylvia (November 23, 2011). "Lady Gaga's A Very Gaga Holiday EP Released now – Review". Evigshed Magazine. Archived from the original on April 8, 2013. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
  16. Grein, Paul (November 30, 2011). "Week Ending Nov. 27, 2011. Albums: Buble Wins A Squeaker". Yahoo!. Archived from the original on December 23, 2011. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
  17. Trust, Gary (December 1, 2011). "Chart Moves: Lady Gaga's 'Marry' Moves Up, Michael Jackson Misses With 'Immortal', Divas Duke It Out". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 31, 2014. Retrieved April 24, 2013.
  18. Hampp, Andrew (April 17, 2016). "Ask Billboard: Lady Gaga's Sales & What's the Longest Streak for Americans Atop the Hot 100?". Billboard. Archived from the original on April 17, 2016. Retrieved April 17, 2016.
  19. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  20. "Ultratop.be – Lady Gaga – White Christmas" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  21. "Lady Gaga Chart History (Japan Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  22. "Lady Gaga Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  23. "Le classement des telechargement albums: semaine du 27/11/11" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. November 27, 2011. Archived from the original on September 28, 2012. Retrieved December 2, 2011.
  24. "Database Top of the Music" (in Italian). FIMI. Retrieved November 12, 2017.
  25. "Lady Gaga Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  26. "Lady Gaga Chart History (Holiday Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  27. https://www.billboard.com/music/Lady-Gaga/chart-history/STM
  28. "Tutti i successi del 2011" (in Italian). Hit Parade Italia. Archived from the original on August 8, 2014. Retrieved August 4, 2014.

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