That Eric Alper

Sixty years ago, A Charlie Brown Christmas aired on TV screens across America, marking the birth of an instant hit and an enduring holiday tradition. Based on Charles M. Schulz’s immensely popular Peantus comic strip, the award-winning animated special was accompanied by a lively score from Bay Area jazz pianist, Vince Guaraldi, who paired original cues (“Linus and Lucy,” “Christmas Time Is Here”) with traditional holiday fare (“O Tannenbaum,” “What Child Is This,” “Hark, the Herald Angels Sing”). Now, more than half a century later, the soundtrack remains a perennial favorite and, with a five-time platinum certification, one of the best-selling jazz albums.

To mark the 60th anniversary of A Charlie Brown Christmas and the 75th anniversary of Peanuts, Craft Recordings celebrates with a range of collectible vinyl reissues, beginning with an eye-catching zoetrope pressing, available September 12th. Centered by an image of Charlie Brown and the Peanuts gang caroling in the snow, Side A features five snowy zoetrope scenes—each offering an animated moment from the holiday special as the record spins. Side B pays homage to the musical side of Peanuts, with an image of Schroeder, Lucy, and Snoopy at the piano, plus five zoetrope scenes that bring the Peanuts gang’s band to life—complete with dancing!

Also available on August 29th is a classic black vinyl pressing, housed in a dazzling anniversary holographic foil jacket. Additionally, fans can find limited-edition pressings of the holographic edition, including Red & Gold Tinsel-colored vinyl at Walmart, Neon Green at Best Buy, Ultra-Clear Glitter at CraftRecordings.com, and Blizzard-Swirl at Urban Outfitters, available on October 17th.

On September 26th, meanwhile, Barnes & Noble will offer their new 2025 annual exclusive picture disc, featuring the skating scene from the holiday special on one side, and the iconic album cover image on the other. Coming this fall, Target issues a deluxe holographic foil edition that includes Christmas Tree-colored vinyl and an anniversary poster. Target will also offer an exclusive Emerald Green collectible 4” Tiny Vinyl, featuring two classic songs, “Linus & Lucy” and “Christmas Time Is Here (Vocal),” which plays at 33.3 rpm on most manual turntables and is available on August 8th.

When A Charlie Brown Christmas premiered on December 9, 1965, few could have predicted the cultural impact that the half-hour animated special would have. Adapted from Charles M. Schulz’s iconic Peanuts comic strip, the Emmy and Peabody Award-winning broadcast captivated nearly half of America’s television viewers that evening, cementing its place as a holiday tradition and launching one of the most enduring franchises of the 20th century. But the story of this beloved animated special—and its timeless soundtrack—begins a year earlier.

In 1964, veteran producer Lee Mendelson set out to create a television documentary about Schulz and his wildly popular Peanuts comic strip, titled A Boy Named Charlie Brown. For the score, he enlisted Vince Guaraldi, a rising Bay Area jazz pianist, who was fresh off the success of his Grammy-winning hit, “Cast Your Fate to the Wind.” While the documentary never aired, Mendelson was impressed by Guaraldi’s sophisticated cues. And, when A Charlie Brown Christmas was greenlit the following year, Mendelson turned to the pianist once again, marking the beginning of a long and fruitful partnership.

Joined primarily by trio members Fred Marshall on bass and Jerry Granelli on drums, Guaraldi breathed life into the Peanuts gang through original cues, including the instantly recognizable Peanuts theme, “Linus and Lucy,” “Skating,” the bossa-nova flavored “Christmas Is Coming,” plus vocal and instrumental versions of “Christmas Time Is Here,” which quickly became a seasonal classic. The trio also brought their West Coast jazz sensibility to a selection of traditional Yuletide fare, including “O Tannenbaum,” “Hark, the Herald Angels Sing,” and “What Child Is This.”

Like its TV counterpart, A Charlie Brown Christmas became an immediate hit, and Guaraldi would continue to score subsequent Peanuts specials until his passing in 1976. Over the decades, Guaraldi’s evocative themes have become touchstones of American culture, while year after year, A Charlie Brown Christmas remains one of the top-selling holiday and jazz albums. In May 2022, the album was certified five times platinum by the RIAA. Months later, it reached its highest placement at No. 2 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart, beating its previous peak of No.6 in 2021. A Charlie Brown Christmas has long remained the best-selling jazz album of all time, alongside Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue. Among other honors, it was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and was added to the Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry.

A1. O Tannenbaum
A2. What Child Is This
A3. My Little Drum
A4. Linus & Lucy
A5. Christmas Time Is Here (instrumental)
B1. Christmas Time Is Here (vocal)
B2. Skating
B3. Hark, The Herald Angels Sing
B4. Christmas Is Coming
B5. Für Elise
B6. The Christmas Song
B7. Greensleeves