'Tis the season for holiday albums, from Jennifer Hudson to Toby Keith and Jimmy Fallon

NEW YORK (AP) — It's not the holiday season until the house is full of festive music, from classics to covers and reimaginations across genres, for all to enjoy.

In honor of the most wonderful time of the year, here are some of the best new holiday releases for the 2024 season.

When it comes to country music Christmas classics, Vince Gill and Amy Grant immediately come to mind. The couple is no stranger to the world of holiday music, and their latest collection, “When I Think of Christmas,” channels the spirit of their popular “Christmas at the Ryman” residency in Nashville, with two new recordings: a duet of “'Til the Season Comes Round Again” and Grant's take on the title track.

Don't fix what ain't broke is an expression for a reason: Sometimes the best holiday album listening experience is enjoying the classics, but newly remixed and remastered. Enter the 16-track “Christmas Once More” from the Carpenters. Fall in love with “Sleigh Ride” and “(There’s No Place Like) Home For The Holidays” all over again.

Jennifer Hudson has done a ton in her career — including winning an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony, making her the rare performer to EGOT, as the expression goes — but a holiday album? That's new territory. “The Gift of Love” is her first, full of big-hearted classics like “O Holy Night,” “Winter Wonderland,” “Auld Lang Syne” and “Carol of the Bells,” which features the a cappella-meets-Zulu music South African group The Joy. The album also contains some inventive originals. In that category: “Almost Christmas” with Common. If there is only one album to grab this holiday season, you'd be wise to make it this one.

Another big name in contemporary music has released their first holiday album. Little Big Town's “The Christmas Record,” produced by the legendary Dave Cobb, is a country music spectacular. Like Hudson's, this one is a collection of familiar tunes along with originals — like the opener “Glow,” and the cheery vocal harmony of its chorus: “That shine, that shimmer deep inside of you / Find that magic, let the light in you show / Let it go / Let it glow.”

In February, country superstar Toby Keith, a hit crafter of pro-American anthems who riled up critics and was loved by millions of fans, died at 62. In the time since, he's been eulogized and celebrated, and that continues with a newly remastered reissue of his 1995 holiday classic, “Christmas to Christmas.”

Clay Aiken — you read that name correctly, the onetime “American Idol” runner-up and politician — has returned with his first studio album in over a decade, “Christmas Bells Are Ringing.” His voice sounds as sweet and theatrical as ever — a natural partner to holiday classics.

At the intersection of Christmas and comedy albums comes Jimmy Fallon's “Holiday Seasoning.” The “Tonight Show” host gets into the spirit of the season with jokes — and some A-list guests — included. Check out “Almost Too Early for Christmas” with Dolly Parton, “Hallmark Movie” with Cara Delevingne, and “New Year's Eve Polka (5-4-3-2-1)” featuring the Roots and Weird Al. It's exactly what it sounds like.

For a third year in a row, the Philly Specials — former Philadelphia Eagle Jason Kelce and current Eagles Lane Johnson and Jordan Mailata — have released a holiday album for charity. “A Philly Special Christmas Party” benefits a few organizations, including the Children’s Crisis Treatment Center and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. If getting NFL stars to sing sounds funny, well, that's kind of the point. The fun and absurdity are this album's superpowers: On the Americana “Maybe This Christmas,” Kelce (brother to Travis Kelce) and Stevie Nicks duet, singing, “And maybe forgiveness will ask us to call / Someone we love / Someone we’ve lost for reasons we can’t quite recall / Maybe this Christmas.” It's moving.

Let's be honest here. Around Christmas, everyone wants to hear Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong. Why not hear them together? “Ella & Louis Wish You a Swinging Holiday” is a new boxset, two jazz classics meeting in perfect harmony: “Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas” and “Louis Wishes You A Cool Yule.”

Ben Folds might not be an obvious pick for holiday music — “Sleigher” is his first Christmas album, after all — but it's a match made in heaven. His indie piano pop has charmed horn-rimmed glasses wearers for many years; his delicate compositions hit like falling snow. There are seven originals here and three covers.

The holidays, like every day, are a time for listening to Motown Records' vocal groups. This year, tuck into a new reissue of the Temptations' 1980 album, “Give Love at Christmas.” It's for fans of five-part harmonies and soulful renditions of classics.

This combination of images shows holiday albums, top row from left, "Christmas Once More" by The Carpenters, "Holiday Seasoning" by Jimmy Fallon, “Ella & Louis Wish You A Swinging Christmas” by Ella Fitzgerald, second row from left, "Sleigher" by Ben Folds, "When I Think of Christmas" by Amy Grant and Vince Gill, "The Gift of Love" by Jennifer Hudson, bottom row from left, “Christmas to Christmas," by Toby Keith, “The Christmas Record” by Little Big Town, and "Give Love At Christmas” by The Temptations. (A&M/UMG Recording, Republic, Verve, New West Records, MCA Nashville, Interscope, Mercury Nashville/UMG, Capitol Records Nashville, Motown via AP)

This cover image released by Vera Y Records shows “A Philly Special Christmas Party” by The Philly Specials. (Vera Y Records via AP)

This album cover image released by Alvins Records shows "Christmas Bells Are Ringing" by Clay Aiken. (Alvins Records via AP)

This album cover image released by Motown Records shows “Give Love At Christmas” by The Temptations. (Motown via AP)

This album cover image released by Capitol Records Nashville shows “The Christmas Record” by Little Big Town. (Capitol Records Nashville via AP)

This album cover image released by Verve Records shows “Ella & Louis Wish You A Swinging Christmas” by Ella Fitzgerald. (Verve via AP)

This cover image released by New West Records shows "Sleigher" by Ben Folds. (New West Records via AP)

Thia album cover image released by A&M/UMG Recordings shows "Christmas Once More" by The Carpenters. (A&M/UMG Recordings via AP)

This album cover image released by Republic Records shows "Holiday Seasoning" by Jimmy Fallon. (Republic Records via AP)

This album cover image released by Mercury Nashville/UMG shows “Christmas to Christmas," a reissue by Toby Keith. (Mercury Nashville/UMG via AP)

This album cover image released by Interscope Records shows "The Gift of Love" by Jennifer Hudson. (Interscope Records via AP)

This album cover image released by MCA Nashville shows "When I Think of Christmas" by Amy Grant and Vince Gill. (MCA Nashville via AP)

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are slipping Tuesday following escalations in the Russia-Ukraine war, as investors herd into gold, Treasury bonds and other investments traditionally seen as safer during times of trouble.

The S&P 500 was 0.5% lower in early trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 319 points, or 0.7%, as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.5% lower.

The losses were more severe in European stock markets, where France’s CAC 40 index fell 1.8% and Germany’s DAX lost 1.7%. They sank after Russia said Ukraine fired six U.S.-made ATACMS missiles at it. Earlier in the day, Russian President Vladimir Putinformally lowered the threshold for Russia’s use of its nuclear weapons.

Gold rose 0.5% and recovered some of the losses it sustained following Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. presidential election. Prices also rose for U.S. Treasury bonds, which are seen as some of the world’s safest investments. That in turn lowered their yields, and the 10-year Treasury yield fell to 4.37% from 4.41% late Monday.

Such cautiousness overshadowed optimism coming from several reports by big U.S. retailers showing bigger profits for the summer than expected.

Walmart climbed 3.4% after topping forecasts for both profit and revenue. The nation’s biggest retailer said it saw broad-based strength across its categories, including sales both online and in stores. It also said it served more upper-income households, while raising its forecasts for sales and profit for the full year.

Lowe’s likewise delivered bigger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected, but its stock nevertheless slipped 3.5%.

A report in the morning said construction crews broke ground on fewer new homes last month than economists expected.

Other big companies set to report this week include chipmaker Nvidia and Target on Wednesday and Deere on Thursday.

Nvidia, with a total market value of nearly $3.5 trillion, will need to hit analysts’ high expectations for growth during the latest quarter to justify its big stock price, which has surged more than 185% this year amid Wall Street’s frenzy around artificial-intelligence technology.

Elsewhere on Wall Street, Super Micro Computer soared 22% after it said it filed a plan with Nasdaq to keep its stock listed on the exchange. It also said it hired an independent auditor, which can help it file financial statements that it needs to in order to comply with Nasdaq’s listing requirements.

The company’s stock has been on a wild ride. It more than quadrupled in the first two and a half months of this year because the company makes servers used in AI. But it gave up all that and more, with losses accelerating after Ernst & Young resigned as its public accounting firm. A special committee of the company’s board later said that a three-month investigation found “no evidence of fraud or misconduct on the part of management or the Board of Directors.”

In stock markets abroad, indexes in Asia were more stable than in Europe. They rose 0.7% in Shanghai and 0.4% in Hong Kong, rebounding from early losses.

AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed.

FILE - The morning sun shines on Wall Street in New York's Financial District on Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan)

FILE - People pass the New York Stock Exchange on Nov. 5, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)

Currency traders pass by a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won, center, at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

Currency traders work near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won, center, at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

A currency trader reacts near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)