Credit: Randee St. NicholasA remastered edition of REO Speedwagon‘s 2009 album Not So Silent Night: Christmas with REO Speedwagon has just been released as a digital download. The new edition features several bonus tracks, including a new version of the group’s 2010 yuletide tune “I Believe in Santa Claus.”
Frontman Kevin Cronin tells ABC Radio that the band is “really proud” of the holiday collection, which he says is “more than just a Christmas album…it’s a real REO Speedwagon album.”
Cronin explains that the band “put a lot of time and energy into this record,” coming up with uniquely reimagined renditions of a variety of holiday tunes.
The one brand-new track on the Not So Silent Night reissue is the updated “I Believe in Santa Claus,” which Cronin says his band had recorded a couple of other times over the years but, in his opinion, hadn’t quite perfected.
He says of the new rendition, “Dave Amato just played some great electric guitar, some great harmony guitar parts, and we just kind of amped it up a little bit. And…I really feel like this time we got it right.”
Cronin tells ABC Radio that he considers “I Believe in Santa Claus” “a love letter to our families, and I think any parent who gives the song a listen might feel the same way I felt when I wrote those lyrics.”
A CD version of the Not So Silent Night reissue hits stores this Friday, while the first-ever vinyl edition of the album will be released on December 1. While the CD and LP don’t include the updated take on “I Believe in Santa Claus,” both feature a download card allowing fans to access a free digital version of the track.
Here’s the track list of the Not So Silent Night reissue:
“I Believe in Santa Claus” (New 2017 Version)*+
“The First Noel”
“Winter Wonderland”
“Silent Night”
“Deck the Halls”
“Little Drummer Boy”
“The White Snows of Winter”*
“Angels We Have Heard On High (Gloria)”
“Children Go Where I Send Thee”
“I’ll Be Home for Christmas”*
“God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen”
“Happy Xmas (War Is Over)”
“Blue Christmas”
“Joy to the World”
“Sleigh Ride”*
“Hark! The Herald Angels Sing”*
“We Three Kings”*
“I Believe in Santa Claus” (Acoustic Version)*
* = not featured on vinyl version
+ = not featured on CD version.
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