Wonderful Christmastime / Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reggae (Canary Yellow 7")

Track list

Side 1

1. Wonderful Christmastime

   Written by Paul McCartney

   3:48 • Studio version • A • Edited version

   Paul McCartney : Backing vocals, Drums, Electric guitar, Keyboards, Mixing engineer, Producer, Sleigh bells, Synthesizers, Tambourine (?), Vocals Eddie Klein : Mixing assistant engineer

   SessionRecording : June - July 1979 • Studio : Home Studio, Peasmarsh, Sussex, UK

   SessionRecording : June - July 1979 • Studio : Spirit Of Ranachan Studio, Campbeltown, Scotland

   SessionMixing : Oct 04, 1979 • Studio : EMI Studios, Abbey Road

   Credits & recording details courtesy of Luca Perasi • From the books "Paul McCartney: Music Is Ideas. The Stories Behind the Songs" • Buy Volume 1 (1970-1989) and Volume 2 (1990-2012) on Amazon

   

Side 2

1. Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reggae

   Written by Johnny Marks

   1:48 • Studio version • A

   Performed by : Paul McCartney Paul McCartney : Producer Mark Vigars : Assistant recording engineer Richard Lush : Recording engineer Bob Loveday : Fiddle

   SessionRecording : May 12, 1975 • Studio : EMI Studios, Abbey Road

From udiscovermusic, September 16, 2025:

With this year’s holiday season swiftly approaching, Paul McCartney has announced a new 7-inch vinyl edition of his seasonal hits “Wonderful Christmastime” and “Rudolph The Red Nosed Reggae.” Due out this November, the reissue comes in a special-edition Canary Yellow colorway.

Recorded during the solo sessions for McCartney’s album McCartney II, “Wonderful Christmastime” was released as a single in November 1979, and later appeared on his band Wings’s final studio album Back To The Egg. At the time, it marked his first solo release in over eight years, following 1971’s “Eat At Home.” Over the decades it’s been covered by a vast array of contemporary artists, including Kylie Minogue, Diana Ross, Kelly Rowland, Mac Demarco, Hilary Duff and The Ready Set.

Like “Wonderful Christmastime,” “Rudolph The Red Nosed Reggae” also appeared as a B-side on Back To The Egg. True to its title, the song is a dub-inflected version of the classic carol popularized in 1949 by Gene Autry. Recorded in May 1975, it featured McCartney on piano, electric harpsichord, bass guitar and drums, as well as Bob Loveday on violin.

The new release of both tracks is part of UMe’s holiday vinyl reissue series, which kicked off in 2024. Over the past two years, UMe has released a select group of holiday hits on individual 7” color vinyl. The reissues are available both individually and as a complete box set with carrying case—previous releases in the series include Ella Fitzgerald’s “Sleigh Ride” and “Jingle Bells”; Chuck Berry’s “Run Rudolph Run” and “Merry Christmas Baby”; Burt Ives’s “A Holly Jolly Christmas” and “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer”; and Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” and “Papa Noel.”