Darlene Love owns Christmas — apologies to Mariah and Brenda Lee, but it’s true thanks to the masterpiece that is “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home).”
Love also sang backup vocals on “The Monster Mash,” so she’s got a stake in Halloween. And now the legendary singer will perform with the Boston Pops on July 4th.
Is Love slowly working to take over every major holiday?
“You know I hadn’t thought about that, but that’s a great idea,” Love told the Boston Herald with a big laugh. “People still want to book me more for Christmas than any other time of the year. I understand that and I joke with my audience and say, ‘You know there are many more months in the year.’”
“But they have actually started hiring me for shows at Valentine’s Days also,” she added with another laugh.
So yes, Love is on track to rule year round. But first the 82-year-old Rock and Roll Hall of Famer has to conquer the Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular, which will also feature Broadway queen Kelli O’Hara and country/rock/Tex Mex champs the Mavericks.
Booking the Pops annual July 4 concert can be tricky — not every artist can make smart use of a symphony behind them. But Love is a perfect choice. Love came up in the ’60s singing with vocal group the Blossoms on hit records that used huge horn and string sections such as Tina Turner’s “River Deep – Mountain High.”
“Very rarely do entertainers get to work with 60, 70, 80 pieces, and we adore it,” Love said of returning to work with the Pops. “It makes it so much easier for us when it feels like the way we recorded it when we have that big orchestra. It’s really a lot of fun for me.”
Love’s last performance with the Pops came during the orchestra’s 2016 Gospel Night celebration. Another inspired Pops pick considering the singer’s background.
“When your father’s a pastor, you are the church when you first start out,” she said of her childhood in Southern California. “So I did a lot of growing up with gospel music and never even thought about singing secular music. I got introduced to (pop music) not as a singer but through my girl friends. I’d go to their houses or parties, and they’d play music other than gospel.”
Once she was introduced to the Blossoms in the late ’50s, things took off for the teenager. Or rather things started and stopped taking off repeatedly.
Between singing on “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” in 1963 and today, she has had to fight for her rightful place in history — see the 2013 Oscar-winning documentary on session singers, “20 Feet from Stardom.” Thankfully, Love has now become an in demand performer for a big chunk of the year.
Next up, Love for Labor Day, Love for Arbor Day, Love for April Fools, Love for the whole rest of the year.
For details on Darlene Love and the Boston Pops, visit darleneloveworld.com and bso.org
