A Very Special Christmas wife Vicki, as she was a volunteer for the organization. Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, the founders of A&M Records, along with Bobby Shriver, helped the Iovines realize the project. Since the release of the first album in 1987, the series has raised over $100 million for Special Olympics, more than any other benefit series. The album cover art is designed by artist Keith Haring. In 1995, the jazz-oriented "Jazz to the World" was released by Blue Note Records. The following year, "World Christmas", which focused on diverse artists from around the globe, was released by Blue Note subsidiary Metro
Christmas Album (Herb Alpert album) artwork), with annual reappearances in record stores at Christmastime. The album was re-released again on CD by the Shout!Factory label in 2006 as were many of the other Tijuana Brass albums. The Shout!Factory release restored the original artwork to the front cover and featured the original back cover on the included CD booklet. Another CD re-release occurred on October 23, 2015 (Herb Alpert Presents label, remastered), this time restoring the original artwork to the front and back. The album contains a mixture of popular Christmas-season music, mostly American secular standards. Exceptions include the Bach piece "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring,"