Wanna feel old? Well, Mariah Carey doesn’t. The superstar famously refuses to discuss her age (her own Wikipedia notes that the exact number of which is unclear) and refers to her birthdays as “anniversaries.” But the unassailable truth, insofar as the average human brain perceives time, is that 25 years have passed since the release of Carey’s Merry Christmas. Seeing as, regardless of the state of Carey’s career, Christmas is the one time you can count on hearing her on heavy rotation (thanks to “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” which hit its highest peak on the Billboard Hot 100 last year, 24 years after its release: No. 3), it makes sense that she’s cashing in on the silver anniversary of a beloved album.
Per Carey’s official site, the Deluxe Anniversary Edition of Merry Christmas will drop November 1 and will contain the original album, “plus a very special bonus disc that includes rare remixes, previously unreleased live tracks from Mariah’s 1994 St. John the Divine concert, and Mariah’s brand-new, festive rendition of [‘Sugar Plum Fairy’].” The bonus tracks range from a few songs from her second Christmas album, 2010’s Merry Christmas II You, some soundtrack one-offs (“The Star” from The Star, and “Lil Snowman” from the 2017 animated movie to which she attached her name, as well as that of her perennial favorite carol, All I Want for Christmas Is You), and some remixes including the “Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town” remix that first appeared on the 2005 reissue of Merry Christmas (this is not her first time at the retro rodeo). The St. John the Divine concert found her in stellar voice (to the point of being at times indistinguishable from that which could be heard on the studio recordings of the songs she performed). Here’s that version of “Joy to the World.” Full tracklist below that.
1. Silent Night
2. All I Want for Christmas Is You
3. O Holy Night
4. Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)
5. Miss You Most (At Christmas Time)
6. Joy to the World
7. Jesus Born On This Day
8. Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town
9. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
10. Jesus Oh What a Wonderful Child
11. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
Disc 2
1. Sugar Plum Fairy Introlude
2. All I Want For Christmas Is You (Live At The Cathedral Of St. John The Divine)
3. Silent Night (Live At The Cathedral Of St. John The Divine)
4. Joy to the World (Live At The Cathedral Of St. John The Divine)
5. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing / Gloria (In Excelsis Deo)(Live at the Cathedral Of St. John the Divine)
6. Jesus Born On This Day (Live at the Cathedral Of St. John the Divine)
7. Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town (Live at the Cathedral Of St. John The Divine)
8. Oh Santa!
9. Christmas Time Is In the Air Again
10. When Christmas Comes (Duet with John Legend)
11. The Star
12. Lil Snowman
13. Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town (Anniversary Mix)
14. All I Want for Christmas Is You (So So Def Remix)
15. All I Want for Christmas Is You (Mariah’s New Dance Mix Extended 2009)
16. Joy to the World (Celebration Mix)
17. Joy to the World (Flava Mix)
18. Sugar Plum Fairy Introlude (Acapella)