"Happy Holiday" (sometimes performed as "Happy Holidays") is a popular song composed by Irving Berlin in 1942 and published the following year.^[1]

History

"Happy Holiday" was introduced by Bing Crosby and Marjorie Reynolds (dubbed by Martha Mears) in the 1942 film Holiday Inn in a scene when the Inn opens for the first time. While it is commonly regarded as a Christmas song, in the film it is performed on New Year's Eve, and expresses a wish for the listener to enjoy "happy holidays" throughout the entire year. It contains certain melodic material first used in Berlin's earlier song "Easter Parade".^{[citation needed]}

Jo Stafford was the first to release it on a Christmas album, on her album of the same name in 1955.^[2]

The Kay Thompson song "The Holiday Season" is sometimes paired with "Happy Holiday" as a medley. This was first popularized by Andy Williams (whom Thompson herself discovered and mentored). Other artists who have covered the "Happy Holiday"/"Holiday Season" medley include The Manhattan Transfer, She & Him, and Michael W. Smith.

Renditions

• Bing Crosby recorded the song on June 1, 1942, for Decca Records with John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra, plus The Music Maids and Hal.^[3] Crosby also used the song as the introduction to his long-running A Christmas Sing with Bing radio shows.
• Jo Stafford on her album of the same name in 1955.
• Jackie Gleason, on his 1956 album Merry Christmas^[4]
• Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme, on their 1964 album That Holiday Feeling!^[5]
• Andy Williams (in a medley with "The Holiday Season"), on his 1963 album The Andy Williams Christmas Album^[6]
• Peggy Lee, on her 1965 album Happy Holiday^[7]
• Percy Faith, on his 1966 album Christmas Is...^[8]
• Living Strings and Living Voices, on their 1968 album White Christmas^[9]
• Nelson Riddle, on the 1970 album Avon Christmas 1970^[10]
• The Carpenters (as part of a medley), on their 1984 album An Old-Fashioned Christmas^[11]
• Johnny Mathis (in a medley with "Caroling, Caroling"), on his 1986 album Christmas Eve with Johnny Mathis^[12]
• Sarah Vaughan (in a medley with "White Christmas"), on the 1989 album Hallmark Presents Carols of Christmas^[13]
• The Manhattan Transfer (in a medley with "The Holiday Season"), on their 1992 album The Christmas Album^[14]
• Perry Como (in a medley with "We Need a Little Christmas"), on his 1994 album Perry Como's Christmas Concert^[15]
• Acoustix, on their 1999 album Cool Yule^[16]
• Barry Manilow (in a medley with "White Christmas"), on his 2002 album A Christmas Gift of Love^[17]
• Dionne Warwick, on her 2004 album My Favorite Time of the Year^[18]
• Michael W. Smith (in a medley with "The Holiday Season"), on his 2014 album The Spirit of Christmas^[19]
• She & Him (in a medley with "The Holiday Season"), on their 2016 album Christmas Party^[20]
• Seth MacFarlane and Elizabeth Gillies, on their 2023 album We Wish You the Merriest.^[21]

Charts

Andy Williams "Happy Holiday/The Holiday Season" version