For nearly 30 years, Darlene Love has helped bring the holiday spirit to the Late Show with David Letterman by singing her classic song “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home).”
Darlene Love Will Retire ‘Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)’ From TV After ‘Letterman’ Ends
The longtime tradition ended on Friday night (Dec. 19) when Love gave her final Late Night delivery of the tune before Letterman’s retirement in May 2015. She first performed “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home),” from the 1963 album A Christmas Gift for You,” in 1986.
“This would be my 28th year in a row,” Love recently told Billboard. “They never told me not to, but it was an unspoken thing. They couldn’t ask me not to sing ‘Christmas (Baby)’ on another show, but after 10 years, then 15 years, of doing this one song on this one show, I felt I had an obligation to be true to them.”
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Don’t expect to see Love sing “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” on any other TV late-night talk shows, because she’s vowed never to do it, according to the New York Times.
“People say, ‘[Letterman] can’t demand that,'” Love said. “I say, ‘He’s not demanding.’ I made a point myself, and I want to do it just for David.”
But don’t think this means Love is retiring “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” from live performances.
“I called Paul [Shaffer] not too long ago and said, ‘Well, what are we gonna do now?'” Love told Billboard. “I said, ‘I think we should get together once a year and do a huge Christmas show. A Paul Shaffer-Darlene Love Christmas show somewhere in New York.’ I’m sure it would sell out.”