I've gone on record saying that my favorite candy in the world is "The Sweet Escape," the saccharine and wonderful pop team-up between Gwen Stefani and Akon. The song is sugary and exhilarating, even a decade later.

While I'm perpetually waiting for another Gwen cut to knock me down like that one, the good news is that she recently released a Christmas album that mixes new original compositions with holiday staples (and new classics).

One of them is "Last Christmas," perhaps the saddest but also most sparkly of yuletide heartbreak odes penned by George Michael in 1984. On Tuesday night (December 20) — with Christmas mere days away — Stefani brought her "Last Christmas" rendition to The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

Stefani's take on the song's shimmering-tinsel synths favors a more organic approach: no synths at all. Instead, her band adopts a vintage, creaky-vinyl doo-wop effect that makes the longing in the lyrics seem that much more bittersweet. All in all, if you told me this was a bonus track on one of the She & Him Christmas albums featuring guest vox from Gwen, I'd believe you.

You Make It Feel Like Christmas is out now, so between that and the brand-new Sia holiday assortment, you should be covered from now until the big day.

And if you find yourself wanting a modernized take on the glittery, snow-dappled magic of the original "Last Christmas," there's always Carly Rae Jepsen's cover.