Break out the eggnog and the shrimp cocktail! It’s time for “Red’s Animated Advent Calendar”, a seasonal collection of my favourite holiday tunes from years gone by!

Andy Williams‘ “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” was released in 1963 for “The Andy Williams Christmas Album”. The song was written for NBC-TV’s Andy Williams Show and became a staple of his annual Christmas specials.

Andy’s solo career started in 1954 when he signed with Archie Bleyer‘s label Cadence Records. Some of his early Cadence hits included “Canadian Sunset”, “Butterfly” and “Lonely Street”, but his biggest hit was 1963’s “Can’t Get Used to Losing You” on Columbia Records. Andy Williams sold almost 45 million records in his 50-year career, including 15 gold and 3 platinum albums.

The song has been covered by almost everybody (except Michael Bublé) but Andy’s version remains the gold standard. From Christmas 1963, here’s Andy Williams and “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year”!