Sufjan Stevens is getting into the holiday spirit early with a new compilation titled Worst Christmas Ever!, which is set to arrive on November 6th via Asthmatic Kitty Records.
The 16-track collection distills his famously sprawling Christmas catalog into a single album, gathering 15 selections from earlier box sets plus the previously unreleased “On This Christmas (It Only Gets Better).”
Stevens’ relationship with Christmas music dates back to 2001, when he began recording songs as gifts for friends and family. He would typically spend a week in December recording at home with whoever happened to be around, eventually accumulating nearly five hours of material. Asthmatic Kitty packaged the first five volumes as Songs for Christmas in 2006, followed by another five EPs on Silver & Gold: Songs for Christmas, Vols. 6-10 in 2012.
Worst Christmas Ever! pulls from both collections, bundling originals like “Sister Winter” and “Put The Lights On The Tree” with the singer-songwriter’s interpretations of holiday classics like “Silent Night” and “Joy To The World.”
All tracks were performed, recorded, and produced by Stevens, with contributions across the original recordings from a wide-ranging cast that includes Aaron and Bryce Dessner, Richard Reed Parry, James McAlister, Rob Moose, Gabriel Kahane, Rosie Thomas, Shara Nova, and many more. The new compilation’s artwork features collages by Ben Giles, while Stevens handled the layout and design.
Worst Christmas Ever! follows the 10th anniversary reissue of Carrie & Lowell last year, which expanded the tracklist with seven previously unreleased tracks. Earlier this year, he also produced Meg Lui’s forthcoming debut album, Instant Validation.
Worst Christmas Ever! Artwork:
Worst Christmas Ever! Tracklist:
01. Silent Night
02. Put The Lights On The Tree
03. Holly Jolly Christmas
04. Christmas In The Room
05. It Came Upon A Midnight Clear (Christmas Infinity Voyage Version)
06. Sister Winter
07. Joy To The World
08. On This Christmas (It Only Gets Better)
09. Angels We Have Heard On High (Christmas Infinity Voyage Version)
10. Only At Christmas Time
11. It Came Upon A Midnight Clear (Christmas Unicorn Version)
12. That Was The Worst Christmas Ever!
13. Sleigh Ride
14. Justice Delivers Its Gift
15. Auld Lang Syne
16. Maoz Tzur (Rock of Ages)
