It was the title song of The Quinto Sisters' first album, Holly Jolly Christmas, recorded in June 1964 for Columbia Records, featuring guitarist Al Caiola with arrangements by Frank Hunter and Marty Manning.

Originally to be sung by Larry D. Mann as Yukon Cornelius, the song, as well as "Silver and Gold", was given to Ives due to his singing fame.

The song was re-recorded by Ives and released in 1964 as a single and later featured the following year in his 1965 holiday album, Have a Holly Jolly Christmas.

This song mentions mistletoe in the bridge, where the singer asks the younger lover to "Kiss her once for me".

As of December 2019, Ives' recording has sold 664,000 copies in the United States since becoming available for download in the digital era.