Darlene Love + Pops = 4th of July Magic

Darlene Love’s last performance with the Pops was the 2016 Gospel Night celebration. (Photo courtesy of the Boston Symphony Orchestra)

Darlene Love owns Christmas – apologies to Mariah and Brenda Lee, but thanks to the masterpiece “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” it’s true.

Love also sang background vocals on “The Monster Mash,” so she has a part in Halloween. And now the legendary singer will perform with the Boston Pops on July 4th.

Is love slowly taking over all the major holidays?

“You know, I hadn’t thought of that, but it’s a great idea,” Love told the Boston Herald with a laugh. “People still want to book me at Christmas more than any other time of year. I understand that and I joke with my audience and say, ‘You know, there are a lot more months in the year.'”

“But they actually started booking me for Valentine’s Day shows too,” she added with another laugh.

So yes, Love is on track to rule all year long. But first, the 82-year-old Rock and Roll Hall of Famer has to conquer the Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular, which also features Broadway queen Kelli O’Hara and country/rock/Tex Mex champs The Mavericks.

Booking the Pops’ annual July 3rd and 4th concerts can be tricky – not every artist can make good use of a symphony in the background. But Love is the perfect choice. Love rose to fame in the ’60s singing hit records with the vocal group The Blossoms that featured large brass and string sections, such as Tina Turner’s “River Deep – Mountain High.”

“It’s very rare that entertainers get to work with 60, 70 or 80 pieces, and we love it,” Love said of returning to work with the Pops. “It makes it so much easier for us when it feels like we recorded it with this big orchestra. I really enjoy it.”

Love’s last performance with the Pops came during the orchestra’s 2016 Gospel Night celebration, another inspired choice by the Pops given the singer’s background.

“When your father is a minister, you are the church from the beginning,” she said of her Southern California childhood. “So I grew up listening to a lot of gospel music and never thought about singing secular music. I was introduced to (pop music) not as a singer but through my friends. I would go to their houses or to parties and they would play music other than gospel.”

When she met the Blossoms in the late 1950s, things were looking up for the teenager. Or rather, things kept going up and then down again.

Between her appearance on “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” in 1963 and today, she’s had to fight for her rightful place in history – see the 2013 Oscar-winning documentary about female session singers, “20 Feet from Stardom.” Thankfully, Love is now an in-demand artist for much of the year.

Next up: love for Labor Day, love for Arbor Day, love for April Fools’ Day, love for the rest of the year.

For more information about Darlene Love and the Boston Pops, visit darleneloveworld.com and bso.org.