Vince Guaraldi's A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving soundtrack to be released October 20, 2023

Break out the jelly beans and popcorn! The complete original soundtrack for the 1973 special A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, composed by Vince Guaraldi, will be released by Lee Mendelson Film Productions on October 20, 2023, just in time for the 50th anniversary of the classic Peanuts holiday special.

In the show, Charlie Brown's plans for Thanksgiving go awry when Peppermint Patty invites herself and her friends to join him for dinner... and he has to come up with a meal for them, even though he doesn't know how to cook (and he is "helped" by Snoopy and Woodstock, of course). Almost every scene in the show is accompanied by Vince Guaraldi's music, and famously includes the song "Little Birdie," sung by Guaraldi himself.

While a few cues from the special have been released on previous Vince Guaraldi compilations (for example, "Thanksgiving Theme" on Charlie Brown's Holiday Hits), most of the tracks have never been available before.

This new album will feature the entire soundtrack for A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving in terrific stereo sound that showcases the music and instrumentation far better than in the broadcast show. And rest assured, the tracks - transferred in high resolution from the original studio session tapes - will all be sound-effects free.

Coming on CD, LP, and digitally, the 13 tracks of show score will be accompanied by 9 never-before-heard bonus and alternative tracks. The liner notes for the physical releases will have a track-by-track analysis by Sean Mendelson, musician, record producer and son of Peanuts producer Lee Mendelson.

After last year's release of the complete original soundtrack for It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, it's exciting to get another high-quality album for another beloved Guaraldi score.

Currently you can pre-order the CD and regular black vinyl versions from the MVD Entertainment shop  (the album's publisher) or from Amazon; they should eventually be available from other retailers as well.

The LP will also be released in two color variants, "Jelly Bean Green" for Record Store Day and "Cranberry Sauce Red" from Target - you've got to love the color names!

You can see the official press release and additional details on the Mendelson Productions website, and preview the alternate track "Is It James or Charlie? (Bonus Mix With Whistling)" on YouTube.

Plus, be sure to check out Guaraldi historian (and FiveCentsPlease.org co-host) Derrick Bang's description of the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving soundtrack at his Impressions of Vince blog.

The track list of the release will be as follows:

Show score

1.Charlie Brown Blues

2. Thanksgiving Theme
3. Thanksgiving Theme (Reprise)
4. Peppermint Patty
5. Little Birdie
6. Thanksgiving Interlude
7. Is It James or Charlie?
8. Linus and Lucy
9. Fife & Drums Theme
10. Charlie Brown Blues (Reprise)
11. Thanksgiving Interlude (Reprise)
12. Thanksgiving Theme (2nd Reprise)
13. Thanksgiving Theme (3rd Reprise)

Bonus/Alternate tracks
14. Thanksgiving Theme (Alternate)
15. Peppermint Patty (Bonus Mix)
16. Linus and Lucy (Bonus Mix)
17. Thanksgiving Interlude (Alternate take 2, 4, and 6)
18. Thanksgiving Interlude (Alternate take 10)
19. Thanksgiving Interlude (Alternate take 14)
20. Is It James or Charlie? (Bonus mix with Whistling)
21. Clark and Guaraldi