Christmas CD

The Christmas CD, later re-released as Winter Weezerland, is a two-song promotional EP of original Christmas songs released by Weezer in late 2000.
==Recording==
The Christmas CD was recorded in November 2000 at Rivers Cuomo's home studio, dubbed "Mocha Fusion Studios", with additional work done later at Cello Studios (shortly before the band recorded Weezer (The Green Album) at the same studio). The first track, "The Christmas Song", was originally recorded for inclusion on the annual KROQ Christmas compilation album Kevin and Bean: The Real Slim Santa, and was edited and partially re-recorded (at urging) for its inclusion on the EP. According to a history of the CD written by Karl Koch in 2014, the promo was released by Geffen in an attempt to capitalize on potential interest in the song around the country which would not have been reached solely through its inclusion on the regional Los Angeles KROQ release. Koch additionally mentions that the EP served as promotion for the band's upcoming album, which would come out only a few months later.
==Release==
The CD was sent to radio stations and record stores in December, with fan reports on Karl's Corner indicating that it began receiving airplay around December 7.Koch, K. (2000, December 8). 12/08/2000. weezer.net. Archived from the original on December 11, 2000, at https://web.archive.org/web/20001211140600/http://weezer.net:80/karl/karlscorner.htm. Additionally, approximately 1000 copies were sent to members of the original Weezer Fan Club.Koch, K. (January 1, 2014). Today in Weezer History: 1/1/2001. Facebook. Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/weezer/photos/a.10150253793032273/10151780464822273. Archived from the original on Weezerpedia at Historic event: 01/01/2001.It is likely that the official Weezer fan club had been entirely dissolved by the time of this CD's release. However, Karl Koch indicates that it was sent to prior members by Geffen, to whom he had provided a memberlist from the now-defunct club. Weezer-themed holiday greeting cards advertising the upcoming release of Weezer (The Green Album) were sometimes included alongside the CD. The songs were uploaded as MP3s onto the short-lived "W.F.O." section on weezer.net around the time of the promo's release, and later onto the A/V section of weezer.com around December 2003.RWA: Weezer fanclub online (beta edition). weezer.net. (2000). Archived from the original on January 7, 2001, at https://web.archive.org/web/20010107200500/http://www.weezer.net:80/wfo/index.htm.weezer mp3s - straight from the band! weezer.com. (2003). Archived from the original on December 6, 2003, at https://web.archive.org/web/20031206100829/http://www.weezer.com/news/. January 1, 2001 is considered to be "official" release date of the CD. 
====iTunes re-release (Winter Weezerland)====
In 2005, the tracks were released for sale through the iTunes music store with the new title Winter Weezerland and unique album art. Fan accounts indicate the release received some backlash due to the fact that the songs were previously available for free on the Weezer website. An email purportedly sent to a fan by Karl Koch which was quoted in an earlier version of the Wikipedia article for the Christmas CD states that the re-release was done under the direction of Geffen without any input from the band. The EP was removed from iTunes by 2008.Wikimedia Foundation. (2008, February 23). Christmas CD (older revision). Wikipedia. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Christmas_CD&oldid=193502130.
==Artwork==
In a post on the Weezer Facebook page which recounts the history of the Christmas CD, Koch provides a story about the art's history:
Note: The dates mentioned in the story above are incorrect. The video footage and subsequent still images were taken on November 13Karl's Corner - 11/13/2000 and the reshoot with the digital Olympus camera was on November 15, 2000Karl's Corner - 11/15/2000 (a).
The cover art for Winter Weezerland utilizes the same photo originally featured on the back of the Christmas CD. It appears to have been photoshopped to remove the original text, and is slightly zoomed in.
==Track listing==
==Personnel==
*Rivers Cuomo – lead guitar, lead vocals
*Patrick Wilson – drums
*Brian Bell – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
*Mikey Welsh – bass guitar, backing vocals
==Gallery==
Image:Weezer Christmas CD.jpg|Christmas CD front cover
Image:Weezer Christmas CD-back.jpg|Christmas CD back cover
Image:Weezer Christmas CD-disc.jpg|Christmas CD disc
Image:WP-KarlQ&A-attachment-207.jpg|Advertisement for Christmas CD, created by Karl Koch and run in CMJ New Music Monthly in late 2000.
Image:Christmas CD greeting card.jpg|Holiday greeting card included with the Christmas CD
Image:Super-Chrono-20010101-a.jpg|A collage featuring Christmas CD's artwork, as well as other photos taken for potential usage.
Image:Weezer Winter Weezerland.jpg|Winter Weezerland cover
==See also==
*Christmas with Weezer
*Weezer discography
==References==
Category:Promotional release
Category:Weezer albums
Category:Fan club
Category:Featured article
Category:2001 releases