Merry Christmas, Baby

Personnel: Jochem van der Saag (synthesizer, programming).
Audio Mixer: Jochem van der Saag.
Recording information: Abbey Road Studios, UK; Angel Studios; Chartmaker Studios, Los Angeles, CA; Echo Beach STudios, Jupiter, FL; Fudge Recording Studio, New Orleans, LA; Garage Studios, Palm Beach, FL; Henson Recording Studios; Satinwood Studio; Studio City Sound, Los Angeles, CA; The Village Recorder, Los Angeles, CA.
Photographer: Penny Lancaster.
Arranger: David Foster.
He's been in the business for over 40 years, but Rod Stewart has never recorded a holiday album until Merry Christmas, Baby, his 2012 seasonal celebration that also doubles as his debut for Verve. Given that Stewart has spent the better part of the past decade singing standards, it's not a surprise that he sticks to the standards here -- "White Christmas," "Blue Christmas," and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" are present and accounted for -- but he bends the rules enough to find space for "When You Wish Upon a Star" and "Auld Lang Syne" as well as "Red-Suited Super Man," which also features Trombone Shorty. That's just one of the guests here; also joining Rod for his Christmas party are Mary J. Blige, Cee-Lo Green, Dave Koz, Ella Fitzgerald, Chris Botti, and Michael Bublé (who also appears on another 2012 Christmas album by Blake Shelton).