For It’s a Very Merry Perri Christmas, Christina Perri wanted to pay homage to some of her favorite holiday songs.

She told CBS Local she wasn’t interested in making Christina Perri-versions of the six songs she chose for her EP. Instead she wanted to stay true to the carols she’s been singing since she was a kid.

“I wanted to make John Lennon proud,” she said. “And ‘Ave Maria’ is a classic, you can’t mess with that one.”

Christina’s favorite cover on the album is The Carpenters “Merry Christmas Darling.” She’s been singing the song since she was just seven years old and says even as a kid, she knew it was special.

“I really connected with the melodies and the story of it is incredible,” she said.

The singer even credits it as being the reason why she makes the music she does today.

“I’m a fan of mellow love songs,” she explained. “It’s kind of my thing.”

Christina often performs John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s classic “Happy Xmas (War is Over)” on tour with her band so she wasn’t too nervous about putting that on her album, but she was concerned that she wouldn’t impress Lennon’s better half.

“I was just more nervous to get it approved by Yoko Ono,” she said. “Knowing whether or not she approved it, that was a little nerve wracking.”

Fortunately, Christmas came early for Christina and Yoko said yes to her version. Unfortunately though, the “A Thousand Years” singer didn’t get a chance to talk to her herself.

“I didn’t have to call and say ‘pretty please’ or sing for her,” she explained. “But I would have!”

- Shannon Carlin, CBS Local

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