LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - After months of feuding with her label boss, pop singer and "American Idol" champion Kelly Clarkson on Monday called music mogul Clive Davis one of the "great record men of all time" and apologized for the brouhaha.

The high-profile dispute with Davis, chairman and chief executive of BMG Label Group who is credited with cultivating stars like Whitney Houston, has overshadowed the release earlier this month of Clarkson's latest album "My December."

"Contrary to recent characterizations in the press, I'm well aware that Clive is one of the great record men of all time. He has been a key advisor and has been an important force in my success to date," the Grammy-winning vocalist said on her Web site.

"He has also given me respect by releasing my new album when he was not obligated to do so."

"My December" was originally due out in April but was delayed until June 26 due to creative differences between Clarkson and Davis over the album.

Turmoil continued prior to its release as Clarkson abruptly fired her long-time manager in June and pulled the plug on a summer concert tour because of poor ticket sales.

"My December" debuted with sales of 291,000 copies to land at No. 2 on the U.S. pop charts earlier this month, behind the No. 1 opening of 'tween queen Miley Cyrus' "Hannah Montana 2/Meet Miley Cyrus," which had first-week sales of over 325,000 units, according to Nielsen SoundScan.