Music by Nacio Herb Brown and lyrics by
Arthur Freed , 1933
In 1945, as World War
II drew to a close, Perry Como burst on the popular music scene with three
records that each sold a million copies. One was a wartime novelty song
based on a phrase that comedian Bob Hope had made popular — A
Hubba-Hubba-Hubba. The second was the soaring adaptation of a Chopin
Polonaise — Till the End of Time. And the third was this fine
song by Arthur Freed and Nacio Herb Brown, composers of such movie hits as
Singing in the Rain, Alone, and You Were Meant for Me. Bing
Crosby introduced Temptation in the 1933 film ‘Going Hollywood’,
but this recording made it a popular classic. And
the Como version served notice on Frank Sinatra and Dick Haymes that a new
top-rank male singer had arrived on the scene — and intended to stay.
~ adapted from Chopin's Polonaise
No. 6 in A Flat Major
Words and Music by Ted Mossman and Buddy Kaye, 1945
" Ask Perry Como which
of all the songs he's recorded is his personal favourite, and he'll
answer: "Till the End of Time". Perhaps it's his sentimental
favourite, but whatever the reason, this is the tune that fully deserves
Perry's admiration, because this is the one that started it all. It
launched his career as a major solo artist in 1945 and was the first of a
continuing string of 13 Gold Records. If it sounds familiar, perhaps you
first heard it as Chopin's Polonaise in A Flat, Op. 53. "
Music by Russ Columbo and Clarence Gaskill with lyrics by
Leo Robin, 1931
Perry's career was skyrocketing in
1946 when this stunning performance of a Russ Columbo favourite was issued.
It became an immediate hit, sold well over a million copies, and was a must
at any Como appearance. So even Perry was amazed when he forgot the words
while singing it at a concert in Cleveland in 1971. 'Can you imagine me
forgetting the words to Prisoner of Love,' he said, grinning, after the
show. 'I used to work with the idiot cards ( prompting cue cards ) on my TV
show all the time, and I guess I just came to depend too much on them.' It's
never happened again, and a good thing too
—Prisoner of Love
remains one of Perry's most requested songs to this day.
Bandleader Charles 'Sunny' Clapp penned this
charming old-fashioned melody in 1927. It was an immediate hit with vocal
groups, especially barbershop quartets, who drained every bit of widespread
harmony out of its pretty chords. It has the sound and feeling of
turn-of-the-century love songs, and Perry's direct, heartfelt vocal is in that
same tradition.
~ from the Bing Crosby Productions, Inc.,
Picture "The Great John L."
Words and Music by James Thornton and Published
1898
Who could have imagined that such a
sweet and simple song as this would become a million-seller in the troubled,
complicated year of 1947? Perry's lovely, thoughtful performance had a great
deal to do with making it a smash. But "When You Were Sweet
Sixteen" also brought listeners back to an earlier era when life was
easier and less complex. James Thornton, a drinking companion of the
legendary world-champion boxer John L. Sullivan, wrote the song at the turn
of the century.
~ featured
by Mario Lanza in "The Great Caruso", 1951
Music by Guy d'Hardelot and lyrics by Edward Teschemacher,
1902
There is probably no other song so
ideally suited to be played at a wedding as "Because", a heartfelt
vow of eternal devotion. Tenor Richard Crooks made this song by Edward Teschemacher
and Guy d'Hardelot an American favourite when he performed it on his radio
programme in the 1920s. With this recording, Perry Como made
"Because" and international success, too. If you feel that a
woman's touch is evident in the song, you're absolutely correct. Guy
d'Hardelot is actually Mrs. W. I. Rhodes, whose maiden name was Helen Guy,
and she wrote the lovely, soaring melody.
~ a No. 1 hit single from
March, 1949, the "B" flip side to "When Is Sometime?"
Music by Sidney Lippman and lyrics by Fred Wise and
Buddy Kaye,
1948
Subtitled 'The Alphabet Song', this
charming love ballad spells the listener through most of the alphabet and finds
a fresh way to say 'I love you' with almost every letter along the way. It's
exactly the kind of novelty tune Perry Como has always had great success with on
jukeboxes and in record shops. Small wonder, since its writers, Buddy Kaye and
Sidney Lippman, came by novelty naturally. Kaye started writing music for Popeye
cartoons in the movies and later wrote such pop hits as 'Don't Be a Baby,
Baby' and 'Full Moon and Empty Arms.' Lippman was the composer of
'My Sugar id so Refined' and 'Chickery Chick'.
~ a double charted single from
January, 1949, with flip side "Forever and Ever"
Words and Music by Bennie Benjamin and
George Weiss
A reflection of the instability of the late
1940s was this moody torch song, which told of the instability of a big
romance. Gordon and The Starlighters had a hit with it in 1949, the last
year of shaky peace between the end of World War II and the start of the
Korean conflict. The sad, pensive tune was written by Bennie Benjamin and
George David Weiss. It contrasts sharply with the jauntiness of some of
their other hits, such as Wheel of Fortune, Cross Over the Bridge
and Surrender.
When Winston L. Moore went on the
air while a college student in Texas, he thought he needed a different name
to go with the hillbilly song he had written for the programme. And that's
how Slim Willet was born. Don't Let the Stars Get In Your Eyes, which became
his biggest hit, started slowly. Willet recalled, years later, that when he
sent the song to a top man of a big record company, 'He suggested that I get
in some other business.' The same executive's company later made more than
half a dozen versions of the song by different artists! Perry, too, was
lukewarm to this Texas-styled number. 'I complained,' Perry said. 'I told
them the metre's wrong. I don't understand it. They said to do just one
take, so I did. Almost two million records later, I guess they were right.'
~ a No. 1 Charted Single for
Perry recorded in May, 1953
from the 1953 Stage Musical
"Me and Juliet"
Music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by
Oscar Hammerstein II
Composer Richard Rodgers borrowed from himself
for the melody for this lovely ballad from the show 'Me and Juliet'. The
melody was originally a theme called Beneath the Southern Cross,
which Rodgers had composed for 'Victory at Sea', the TV series about World
War II. Perry's vocal version climaxes in a full-voiced high note
ending that is superb singing and makes for dramatic listening. Como's tine
control and the ease with which he soars to the top of his register, as
critic Henry Pleasants noted, 'so easy, so natural, so inevitable. Como
sings so well that few notice how well he sings.'
Words and Music by Lois Steele and Jack Fulton , 1954
In 1943, one-time barber Perry Como
launched his solo singing career, and the one-time crooner and trombonist
Jack Fulton started writing songs. Their paths crossed some years later when
"Wanted", a Fulton song that Perry recorded and made one of the
big hits of 1954. An intriguing feature of this pretty performance by Perry
is the way his voice seems to float over the gentle shuffle rhythm in the
background.
Words and Music by Al Hoffman, Dick Manning and
Bix Reichner 1954
Bandleader Perez Prado
introduced the sizzling, screeching mambo to the United States in 1949, but
it caught on with a bang in 1954, and this recording was one reason why. The
song writing team of Al Hoffman and Dick Manning was joined by veteran Bix
Reichner, composer of such hits as "The Fable of the Rose" and
"The Red We Want Is The Red We've Got ( in the Old Red, White and Blue
)", to produce this bright novelty for Perry. The grunts heard from the
chorus are humorous references to bandleader Prado's yelps to his musicians
as they whipped dancers into a mambo frenzy.
This novelty song is a bright ditty,
with Perry and the chorus having fun with the interpolated 'Ah-hahs' and the
frisky little melody. The tune was the 1954 brainchild of writer Bob
Merrill, whose accomplishments also include the scores for such hit musicals
as 'New Girl in Town' 'Take Me Along', 'Carnival', and 'Funny Girl'. Joe
Reisman, Perry's chief arranger and record producer during the mid- and late
1950s, created this hit arrangement.
~ a double charted single from
June, 1956, with flip side "Somebody Up There Likes Me"
theme song from
"The
Perry Como Show"
Words and Music by Carl Sigman, 1956
Dream Along with Me was born in 1955,
when Perry asked some songwriters he knew to come up with a theme for his
TV show. 'I thought about what Perry Como meant to me, and to his fans,'
Carl Sigman recalls, 'and I tried to capture him in a song.
When he told me he had selected 'Dream Along with Me' I was thrilled.' The
best part of this recording is that you finally get to hear the complete
song, not just the few bars that Perry sang before greeting his TV
audience. Among Sigman's other well-known songs are 'Ebb Tide', 'What
Now My Love', 'Civilization ( Bongo Bongo Bongo ), and 'Enjoy
Yourself ( It's Later Than You Think )'
~ Adapted from Alexis Chabrier's
1st theme of España, Rhapsody for Orchestra
Words and Music by Al Hoffman and Dick Manning, 1956
Al Hoffman and Dick Manning also
provided Perry with this peppy novelty. The perky melody first saw the light
of day as one of the themes in Emmanuel Chabrier's
España
rhapsody. Hoffman and Manning turned the Spanish piece into a new fangled love
song, and Perry and the Ray Charles Singers had a ball recording it.
Words and Music by Joe Shapiro
and Lou Stallman, 1956
On an icy January afternoon in
1957, Perry Como recorded one of his hottest hits. For perhaps an hour,
Perry and the musicians experimented with the background sound, then settled
on drummer Terry Snyder's wire brushes on his drum case. 'We all thought it
would be a hot one,' Perry said later of Round and Round. But if we handed
it to an arranger, what could he arrange? There was really nothing there. I
said why don't we do a row-row-row-your boat-thing. I started the beat on
the piano, and that's what we came up with.' And that's how some
million-sellers are born!
It's a graceful Latin custom for a
Host to say, "Mi casa, su casa," when a guest enters his home. It
means, "My house is your house," and is the sincerest form of
welcome the host knows. Al Hoffman and Dick Manning came up with this sweet
song, which Mr. C. made his own with this winsome, completely sincere performance.
~ first certified "Gold"
record by R.I.A.A. in 1958
Words and Music by Lee Pockriss and Paul Vance
Music critics agree that one of the
most appealing, but most difficult vocal achievements is to sing softly and
still remain musical and moving. Perry Como accomplishes this nuance of the
vocal art with almost every song he sings. He performs this best seller
—
written by Paul J. Vance and Lee Pockriss
— so simply and easily
that it seems almost tossed away. Perry's colleagues in the American
recording industry recognized the artistry in the deceptively simple sound
of this hit and rewarded it with a Grammy for Best Vocal Performance, Male,
in 1958.
Music by Burt Bacharach and lyrics
by Hal David , 1958
In the 1950s, Burt Bacharach, a piano
accompanist for top-name singers, was a struggling songwriter. The only
trouble was that his songs were so original and so different from regular
popular songs that few publishers would hear them, let alone publish them.
But 1957 was Bacharach's year. Teamed with lyricist Hal David, he produced
two hits, "The Story of My Life", a song with a 52-bar chorus and
some notes to be whistled by the singer, and "Magic Moments", a
much simpler song with an intriguing melody and a happy lilt. Perry's lovely
million-seller has created many magic moments for listener's ever since.
Music by John Benson Brooks and lyrics by
Bob Russell , 1948
St. Louis is in Missouri, and that's
known as 'The Show-Me' State. And that's what this bright novelty tune is
all about: a gal who has come a long way from St. Louis but, according to
the guy she's trying to impress, still has a long way to go. Bob Russell and
John Benson Brooks collaborated on the song inn 1948. Russell wrote the
words for such hits as Frenesi, Maria Elena, Don't
Get Around Much Anymore and Brazil. Brooks, a leading arranger
for big bands ( including Les Brown's and Tommy Dorsey's ), also had some
hits, among them Who Threw the Whisky in the Well and Just as
Though You Were Here.
Music by Johnny Richards and lyrics by
Carolyn Leigh, 1954
Several writers tried and failed to put
words to this lovely tune by bandleader-arranger Johnny Richards. Carolyn
Leigh took the assignment while her father lay seriously ill in the hospital.
'I wrote the words for him, using some of his own philosophy to cheer him up',
she recalled. 'When the song became No. 1, he was the most happy fella in the
hospital'. Frank Sinatra had a million-seller with it, and it inspired a film
starring Sinatra and Doris Day. Perry's version has a happy, zesty,
full-of-life sound that is exactly right for the song's upbeat flavour.
Music by Joseph Myrow and lyrics by Mack Gordon, 1946
One of the most noted things about
Perry is the effortless way he sings. He makes it seem so simple and easy.
'I don't work at home at all,' he has said of his preparation for
recordings. 'Once you know a song too well, you start to fool around with
it. At the session, when the band's working on the arrangement, I learn the
tune right there.' And that may well be why this performance sounds so fresh
and original. The song, which came from the 1946 musical film 'Three Little
Girls in Blue' was recorded by Frank Sinatra as a rhythm tune.
Music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by
Oscar Hammerstein II
, 1951
Shortly
after the hit musical 'The King and I' opened on Broadway, composer
Richard Rodgers noted, 'I've tried to tell the story through music. 'The
King and I' is truly a musical drama, with every song advancing the plot.
We ask the audience to believe that the people are on stage, who face many
serious problems of life, will suddenly stop talking and burst into song.
We tried to avoid the reality by the singing, and the singing by the
reality.' Perry gives the play's Hello, Young Lovers a bright and
bouncy reading, making the bittersweet words become happy and hopeful.
~ a
popular single from February, 1962, with flip side "The Island of
Forgotten Lovers"
Words and Music by Earl Shuman and Maurice "Bugs" Bower, 1961
'The crazy thing about this song', recalls
Maurice ( Bugs ) Bower, 'is that we had a song, but we needed a title. We called
it 'Caterina', and it turned out to be perfect because the title doesn't have to
translate overseas . . . and we had this song, with the original title, in the
Top Ten in almost every country in the world.' 'Caterina' added another hit to
the list of Earl Shuman, who wrote such favourites as 'Seven Lonely Days', 'Hey
There Lonely Boy', and 'Left Right Out of Your Heart'. Says Bower of Perry's
recording, 'I think the record was popular with little kids because of all those
'ha-ha-ha's' and 'ho-ho-ho's' in it. Kid's think he's Santa Claus!'
Jack Jones launched his singing career with
a hit recording of this pretty waltz by Tony Velona, which won the Grammy for
Best Solo Vocal Performance, Male, of 1961. Since then, the song has become
standard dreamy repertoire fort male singers. It's a gentle reminder that girls
from seven to 77 love to be remembered with little gifts of affection . . .
starting with lollipops and growing up to roses.
After Oscar Hammerstein's
death, Richard Rodgers undertook to be his own lyricist and emerged with a
hit musical called "No Strings". It was a fresh, modern, fashionable show
dealing with a jet-set inter-racial romance. And the orchestra, like the
main characters, had no strings. "The Sweetest Sounds" was the show's big
hit, setting the plot into motion at the beginning and wrapping it all up at
the very end. Perry's treatment is rich and powerful. The throb in his voice
is exactly right for the sense of the lyrics, and the soaring melodic line
is a perfect vehicle for his easy, open style.
~ from the
1942 Western Musical Comedy "Ride 'em Cowboy"
Music by Gene DePaul and lyrics by Patricia Johnston, and
Don Raye
For a few brief minutes,
"I'll Remember April" was an oasis of sanity in the madness of the
1942 Abbott and Costello film "Ride 'Em Cowboy." Dick Foran, the
handsome square-jawed hero on the Universal set, sang the song in it's film
debut. For a long time it remained a love song, but then it was discovered
by the jazz players, who loved it's chord structure and found it a perfect
vehicle for endless improvisation. In Perry's hands, it's a love song again,
and he seems to caress it with his voice. It's a fine performance, one of
Perry's best.
'Bye, Bye, Birdie' and 'It's a
Bird —
It's a Plane —
It's Superman!' are among the Broadway shows of Lee Adams and Charles
Strouse. The two also had a brief entry on the Great White Way titled 'All
American', and though it came and went without making much of a ripple in the
season of 1962, 'Once Upon a Time', the love song from the show, remained
behind. Unlike the Adams-Strouse hits 'Put On a Happy Face' and 'I
Want To Be with You', it is a sad and poignant reminiscence of all the
things that happened or might have happened in the long ago.
Music by Henry Mancini and lyrics by Johnny Mercer
These lyrics by Johnny Mercer were his
favourite of all the wonderful ones he wrote. The music changed Henry Mancini's
career, bringing him his first Academy Award ( in 1961 ) and broadening his
reputation beyond the jazzy 'Peter Gunn' and 'Mr. Lucky' kind of scoring he'd
been doing. The song was almost cut from 'Breakfast at Tiffany's'. But clear
heads prevailed and it actually helped the film become big box office. And for
Perry Como? 'Moon River' gave Perry another dreamy ballad to sing in his
inimitable dreamy style.
English lyrics by Jon Hendricks and Jessie Cavanaugh
When bossa nova exploded on the American music scene in
the early 1960s, this lilting song was its anthem. Jazz saxophonist
Stan Getz made the records that launched bossa nova, or 'the new thing' in
the United States. His inspiration came from some recordings that guitarist
Charlie Byrd had brought back from a Brazilian tour. Among them was one of
'Desafinado', written by Antonio Carlos Jobim, with Portuguese words by
Newton Mendonça.
Jesse Cavanaugh and Jon Hendricks made the literal translation of
'Desafinado' —
'slightly out of tune' —
the basis for their American lyrics. The song was a hit, and bossa nova was
here to stay.
When Bart Howard wrote this pretty song in
1954, he titled it 'In Other Words'. And that's the way cafe singer
Felicia Sanders sang it when she introduced it. But over the years, as more and
more people heard the song, they began to ask for it by the first few words of
the refrain. ( The phrase 'In other words' is sung after the first two
couplets. ) Before long the song was referred to as 'Fly Me to the Moon'.
Finally, the publishers bowed to the public and changed the title officially.
And almost immediately, pianist Joe Harnell had a million-selling record of the
song . . . an instrumental version!
~ this song made it's
national debut when sung by Sandy Stewart on the Como
television show.
Music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb, 1962
In 1962, a music publisher brought John Kander
and Fred Ebb together and suggested that they become a songwriting team.
This wistful song of lost love, told in terms of colour, was their first
effort and a major hit. Although they wrote it with supper-club and
comedienne Kaye Ballard in mind, it became a hit for recording artist Sandy
Stewart, who introduced it on one of the top TV programmes of the year, 'The
Perry Como Show'! Kander and Ebb quickly moved from Tin Pan Alley to
Broadway and started writing musicals with great success. Among their
achievements: 'Cabaret', 'The Happy Time', 'Zorba', and 'Chicago'.
~ a
popular single from May, 1963 with flip side "One More Mountain"
Music by Henry Mancini and lyrics by Al Stillman ,1963
Al Stillman added words to an instrumental
composition that Henry Mancini had originally titled 'Tinpanola' and came
up with this catchy song. It must have the easiest-to-learn lyrics in all of
popular music: just the words 'I love you and don't you forget it,' over and
over, with an occasional line that keeps count of the number of times the phrase
has been said. It's a cute idea and you can almost see Perry's grin as he sings
it.
The Anita Kerr Quartet, one of the finest vocal
groups in popular music, plus a Country harmonica player, join Perry for
this Nashville performance of a low-key rhythm tune. Fred Burch, who wrote
the song with Jan Crutchfield, says. 'We made a demo record of it with me
singing it, and it was totally unique. We had it around for two years. It
was a labour of love, because while we knew it was different and loved it,
nobody else seemed to. The song became our orphan. Then, one day, like in
the storybooks, we heard Perry Como was coming to Nashville to record. We
took the song to Chet Atkins, and he liked it and recommended that Perry
listen to it. He did, and the rest, as they say, is history.'
Words and
Music by Sarah Graham, Richard Ahlert and Eddie Snyder
In this song, Perry sings of what many
young people are doing: living close to the earth, making their own homes,
and earning their own way far from the madness of urban life. It's a
contemporary concept, this yearning to be free and self-sufficient and at
peace with the earth, and songwriters Sara Graham, Eddie Snyder, and Richard Ahlert have captured the feeling perfectly. Snyder, a pianist, wrote such
pop hits as 'Talk to Me' and 'One More Mountain ( One More River )'. Richard
Ahlert might have inherited his father's songwriting talent. He's the son of
Fred E. Ahlert, composer of scores of hits, including 'Mean to Me', 'I'll
Get By', and 'I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter.'
Music by Antonio Carlos Jobim with lyrics by
Vinicius De Moraes
English lyrics by Norman Gimbel
Another bittersweet bossa nova from the pen of
Antonio Carlos Jobim is this one, originally titled 'Insensatez',
which means 'unwise' or 'foolish'. American lyricist Norman Gimbel chose to
stay close to the sound of the original title, but not its meaning. He wrote
lyrics that are poignant and filled with yearning for what might have been.
During the 1960s the songs semed to flow from Jobim as easily as April skies
deliver rain. Now, more than 15 years and at least two musical style changes
later, they arfe still as fresh and melodic as they were on first hearing.
Music by Johnny Mandel with lyrics by Paul Francis Webster,
1965
Songwriter Johnny Mercer tried his hand at
writing lyrics for Johnny Mandel's theme for the film 'The Sandpiper', but
they were rejected by the film's producer. At Mercer's suggestion, lyricist
Paul Francis Webster then took a crack at it. The haunting song that
resulted won an Academy Award ( the first for Mandel and the third for
Webster ) and a Grammy, and became the most recorded and performed song of
1965. It is still a favourite everywhere.
Music by Antonio Carlos Jobim with original lyrics by
Newton Mendonça, 1963
English lyrics by Norman Gimbel , 1966
Originally called 'Meditaçao'
in Brazil, this charming song, by Antonio Carlos Jobim and his old-time friend
Newton Mendonça, relates the story of separated
lovers and of how one meditates on the other. The stately, sad melody seems to
float over the rippling samba rhythm, and that's one reason why bossa nova
caught on so quickly and became so popular. Norman Gimbel wrote the English
lyrics for several of Jobim's songs.
Music by Luiz Bonfa and lyrics by Antonio
Mariz, 1960
English lyrics by George Weiss, Hugo Peretti and
Luigi Creatore ( Hugo & Luigi )
Guitarist Luiz Bonfa and composer Antonio Carlos Jobim, who both rose
o fame during the bossa nova craze of the 1960s, collaborated on the score
to the gorgeous Brazilian film 'Black Orpheus.' This haunting melody was the
movie's leitmotif; it threaded through the story of Orfeo and Eurydice and
was heard in a variety of contexts. When English lyrics were written for it,
the song became 'A Day in the Life of a Fool,' the sad, wan story of
a dejected lover. And that's what Perry sings here very movingly, with
chorus and orchestra and a gentle bossa nova beat.
Music by Antonio Carlos Jobim with lyrics by
Gene Lees and Buddy Kaye
When Antonio Carlos Jobim wrote this lovely, languid
melody, he titled it 'Corcovado', after the mountain near Rio de
Janeiro that is surrounded by a huge concrete statue of Christ. 'The music
tells the story of a man who lives on that hill', Jobim explained. 'He is
always dreaming of the simple life. And from his window, he always sees the
Saviour'. Gene Lees drew the assignment of writing the English lyrics, and he
made it a love song that pulses gently and flows easily from line to line,
idea to idea. Perry's version captures the hushed beauty of the long melody
line and a sense of the muffled sounds of quiet nights.
Original
Italian melody arranged and adapted by Ray Charles and Nick Perito
Additional
Italian adaptation by Edoardo DiCapua
"Perry's Italian heritage
comes to the four in this simple and touching love song. His parents came
from the district of Abruzzi in Italy, and as a child, he absorbed the
customs and the language of the Italian neighborhood he was born into in
Canonsburg, Pennsylvania. Nick Perito, pianist, accordionist, and musical
director for Perry, adapted the old Italian melody for today's style. Ray
Charles, conductor of the Ray Charles Singers, has been with Perry as choral
director since 1954. He had the assignment of tailoring the Italian chorus
to Perry's style for ( these songs ) which were cut in the RCA studios in
Rome."
Musical
adaptation by Nick Perito with
Italian/English lyrics adapted by Ray Charles
This soaring melody, written by Teodoro
Cottrau in 1850, has become the anthem of Naples and a favourite of tenors
everywhere. Nick Perito, a native of Denver who has arranged, composed, and
conducted for such diverse singers as Helen Traubel and Frankie Avalon,
adapted the song and arranged it for Perry's smooth baritone; Ray Charles
did the choral writing.
Arranged and
adapted by Ray Charles and Nick Perito
with additional Italian adaptation by
Salvatore Gambardella
"O Marenariello" is " . . . another lovely old
Italian standard, adapted and arranged by Nick Perito for
Perry, with vocal arrangements by Ray Charles, is sung
completely in Italian by Mr. C. and the chorus. The song
is a memory of another era, but it says something
universal about all lovers: 'Let us go together by the
sea and make love, you and I, heart to heart . . . for I
may perish for the love of you.' "
~ from the MGM Motion Picture
"The Yellow Rolls Royce"
Words and
Music by Riziero Ortolani and Norman Newell
"One of the best things
about the 1965 film 'The Yellow Rolls-Royce' was its music, written by Riz Ortolani, who
also composed the song 'More' for the soundtrack 'Mondo
Cane.' Perry sings this perky melody from the film,
assisted by the Italian chorus, who lend a delightful
international flavour to the few lines they sing in
English. Like the happy-go-lucky Italians one meets in
some films, the song tells us to take each day as it
comes and to be in love, because when you're in love,
tomorrow never comes."
Music and
original Italian lyrics by Nino Rinaldi Rota and Michele Galdieri , 1954
English lyrics
by Don Raye
"Who can forget the
impact of 'La Strata' and the haunting theme that served as an identifying
melody for the character portrayed by Giulietta Masina? The music, by
Nino Rota, was a perfect complement to the Federico
Fellini film, one of the first to make an impression. Rota, who also scored Fellini's 'La Dolce Vita,' 'Nights
of Cabiria,' 'The White Sheik,' and 'Vitelloni,' has
written all kinds of music, from pop songs to symphonies,
to grand opera. But his film music is very special. Don
Raye supplied the English lyrics to Rota's theme. His
credits include such varied songs as 'Mr. Five by Five,'
'I'll Remember April,' and 'Domino.' "
~ featured in
the 1958 Hollywood musical "Seven Hills of
Rome"
Music by Renato Ranucci with Italian lyrics
by Pietro Garinei and Sandro Giovannini
English lyrics
by Carl Sigman
From the Mario Lanza film 'The Seven
Hills of Rome', this lovely song was written by actor Renato Rascel, who
played Mario's cousin in the film. The American words were penned by Carl
Sigman, writer of Perry's theme, 'Dream Along with Me'. Perry, the Italian
chorus, and the large string orchestra, featuring two mandolins for Italian
flavour, make this a recording to remember. It's a performance as Italian as
the seven hills of that ancient city.
Perry's voice has been described by
experts as 'a lovely Italian baritone with close to a two-octave range, a
flawlessly even scale from top to bottom, a masterly use of half-voice and
head-voice, phrasing at once fastidious and eloquent . . . and immaculate,
unobtrusive enunciation.' To hear that description come to life, listen to
this charming love song. Written by Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt, the song
was one of the delights of their 1966 Broadway musical 'I Do! I Do!', based
on the play 'The Fourposter' by Jan de Hartog. The musical had only two
characters —
Robert Preston and Mary Martin —
in a remarkable performance, which covered the life together, from honey
moon to old age, of a couple in love.
Try
to Remember( from the musical
production "The Fantasticks" )
Music by Harvey Schmidt and lyrics by Tom Jones
The
off-Broadway production of the musical 'The Fantasticks' has become a
legend in the American theatre. The show opened on 3rd May, 1960 — and
is still running! The original investment of $16,500 that producer Lore
Noto raised to stage musical has been paid and repaid many thousand fold.
And companies — both professional and amateur — keep the show alive in
many languages all over the world. Tom Jones and Harry Schmidt met at the
University of Texas, where they wrote undergraduate shows as a team. This
gentle, whimsical production was their first full show together and their
biggest hit. Try to Remember is its haunting opening and closing
song.
'This song came out of my own personal
experience,' recalls composer Ervin Drake. 'I have two daughters. Linda, who
is married now, was 14, and Betsy was 8. I really felt my problems and
apprehensions as a father of girls would touch a responsive strain in any
father with daughters.' Of Perry's performance, Drake has said, 'Perry sang
it in a very quiet, very sensitive way. After all, he himself is the father
of girls'.
~ from the Screen Gems
TV production "Here Come the Brides"
Words and Music by Hugo Montenegro, Ernie Sheldon and
Jack Keller
This
perky tune was the theme song for an American TV series called 'Here Come
the Brides' but it has survived longer than the programme it introduced.
The song was written by Ernie Sheldon, Jack Keller, and Hugo Montenegro.
Sheldon is an old movie-title songwriter, with such credits as 'The Sons
of Katie Elder' and 'Lord Love a Duck', and Montenegro became popular with
his themes for such films as 'Lady in Cement', 'Hurry Sundown', and 'The
Wrecking Crew'. Perry had a sizeable hit with this recording and, from the
sound of it, he had a lot of fun, too.
Music by Canache Armando Manzanero and lyrics by
Sid Wayne
This 1970 hit was Perry's first big
success since 1958, when he struck gold with 'Catch a Falling Star'.
Somehow, he had managed to survive the change in musical style of the 1960s
and made a 'comeback' with a new hit. The melody was by one of Mexico's most
prolific and melodic songwriters ( and performers ), Armando Manzanero. Sid
Wayne, who composed such hits as 'See You in September' and 'The
Language of Love', wrote the lyrics. 'It's Impossible' helped to
bring pretty melodies back into rock-heavy popular music and is well on the
way to becoming Perry's 14th Gold Record.
Music by Burt Bacharach and lyrics by Hal David , 1969
Composer Burt Bacharach and lyricist
Hal David capped their conquest of the 1960s with this Academy Award-winning
song in 1969. One of the highlights of the film 'Butch Cassidy and the
Sundance Kid', the song was probably the most recorded piece of music of
that era. Perry's version is soft and slow, light in style, and easy to
listen to. And note the tongue-in-cheek counting to eight by Perry and the
chorus, as a lighthearted jest at the fresh, totally different construction
of the song.
This Snowbird flew to us from
Canada, where its composer Gene MacLellan, and its original hit singer,
Anne Murray, come from. To achieve such unique songs as this one, or
Put Your Hand in the Hand, MacLellan says 'I start out with the sound
in my head. Developing the melody is the easy part, in my case'. That
accounts for the strong and unforgettable melody of MacLellan's music,
most notably in Snowbird.
This slightly mad love song was the
third smash-hit in a row for writer Tony Romeo -- starting with 'Indian
Lake' by The Cowsills in 1968, 'I'm Gonna Make You Mine' by Lou
Christie in 1969, and this tune by The Partridge Family in 1970. It was No.
1 in every country in the world and the American National Association of
Recording Merchandisers ( NARM ) record of the year. Romeo said recently:
'Perry's record of my song made it like a full circle for me. He was one of
the people I grew up with and one of the people I fashioned my ideas in
music on'.
Music by Francis Albert Lai
with lyrics by Rod McKuen
French composer Francis
Lai is among the most melodic of the composers writing for the screen, and
his scores for "A Man and a Woman" and "Love Story" bear
this out. Rod McKuen is probably the best-selling most widely read poet in
America today. The combination of these two forces is irresistible. "I Think
of You" is a pretty song that flows, beautifully and effortlessly, from
start to finish.
Music by Canache Armando
Manzanero and lyrics by Gene Lees
This beautiful melody is by the Mexican composer of 'It's Impossible', with
words by Gene Lees, novelist, former jazz critic, and commentator on popular
music. Lees recently assessed Perry's
style and wrote: 'Como's work consistently astonishes me. He is a fantastic
technician. Listen to the perfection of his intonation, the beauty of the
sound he produces, the constant, comfortable breath control. And take notice
of his high notes. Laymen are often impressed by the high note you can hear
for five blocks. Professionals know that it is far more difficult to hit a
high note quietly. Como lights on a C or D at the top of a tune as softly as a
bird on a branch, not even shaking it.' And Perry's performance of Mr. Lees'
own song is a perfect example of his description.
Words and Music by Eddie Snyder and Richard Ahlert
" As the great popular
singers of the 1940s moved into their golden years, they tended to become
contemplative. Frank Sinatra made emotional musical statements with "It
Was a Very Good Year" and "My Way". Peggy Lee asked "Is
That All There Is?" Tony Bennett made fine musical drama with
"This Is All I Ask". And here Perry muses about the high points in
a rich life, in a moving ballad by the team of pianist Eddie Snyder and
lyricist Richard Ahlert. The song is emotionally charged, although quite
low-key and relaxed in melody. "
Music by Charles Fox and lyrics by Norman Gimbel , 1973
'I enjoy some of the newer things',
Perry said recently. 'But you have to work at these tunes. They're more
complicated than the old ones. After a while you see how much there is in
them'. And this beautiful song is an excellent example of the 'newer things'
Perry spoke of. It was voted a Grammy as song of the year in 1973 and was a
smash hit for Roberta Flack, whose recording of it earned two more Grammys —
one for Record of the Year and another for Best Pop Vocal Female
Performance. It was written by the bright young team of Norman Gimbel and
Charles Fox.
Kris Kristofferson has been a Rhodes
Scholar at Oxford University, a short-story writer who was published in
Atlantic Monthly, an Army helicopter pilot in Germany, and, most recently, a
successful actor. But he very nearly failed at songwriting. For four years
he tried to make it in Nashville, writing songs while barely scraping out a
living for his family as a caretaker, ditch digger, and barman. When he
finally hit the big time, in 1969, this was one of the songs that did it for
him. Although Ray Price made a hit with the song, Kristofferson lived it —
the sad story of the slow dissolution of his marriage over those
heartbreaking early Nashville years.
Music by L. Russell Brown and lyrics by
Irwin Levine , 1973
Irwin Levine and Larry Brown began
writing songs together in 1970. They had 17 hits in just three years,
including the overwhelming success of this happy melody about an ex-convict
coming home to his love. The song was one of the most performed tunes of
1973 and the first song in the history of BMI ( Broadcast Music, Inc.,
an American performing rights society ) to be played more than a million
times on the air in less than a year. In all, there have been more than 400
separate recorded versions of Tie a Yellow Ribbon
—
one of the biggest was by Country artist Johnny Carver and another by Tony
Orlando and Dawn, who made it into a hugely successful hit.
'I don't mind being in my sixties',
Perry said recently. 'I just don't want to feel or act it.' And he doesn't,
judging by the songs he sings and the relish he displays in singing them.
This modern-sounding song is actually the product of a veteran songwriting
team, Al Stillman and Ben Weisman. Wordsmith Stillman wrote 'I Believe',
'Chances Are', 'Moments to Remember', 'No, Not Much', and 'Jukebox
Saturday Night' among others. Weisman's songs range from 'Rock-a-Hula
Baby' to 'Let Me Go Lover' to 'The Night Has a Thousand Eyes'.
Together, they created a song with great appeal and a fresh sound.
Mac Davis' affirmative, buoyant,
delightful song that reminds us all of the role music plays in our lives
is exactly tailored to Mr. C. 'As soon as I could whistle, I started
making up songs', Davis recalls. 'Never studied music. The tunes just come
to me.' He wrote some of Elvis Presley's big hits, including Memories,
Don't Cry, Daddy, and In the Ghetto. But even if he never
wrote another hit, I Believe In Music has made him immortal.
'Feeling . . . I think Country music is the
world's greatest for that', Perry told reporters following his first
sessions in Nashville. 'The guys feel what they're saying. I think that's
why it's lasted so long. Feeling is very much a part of Country —
of Nashville. I try to feel what I'm singing.' That's probably why
Perry chose to sing Behind Closed Doors. It was a huge hit for Country
singer Charlie Rich, was voted Best Song of the Year by the Country Music
Association in 1974, and won a Grammy for Best Country Song.
Words and Music by Rory Bourke, Billy Sherrill and
Norro Wilson
Some of Country music's biggest writers
got together to produce this whopping hit, which Charlie Rich propelled onto
everyone's list of favourites in 1974. Rory Bourke joined the veterans Billy
Sherrill and Norro Wilson in its composition. Sherrill's hits include Almost
Persuaded, Your Good Girl's Gonna Go Bad, and Stand By Your
Man, one of Tammy Wynette's greatest hits. Norro Wilson is a writer,
record producer, and, on occasion, a singer and comedian. Among his hits are
Good Things and A Picture of Me ( Without You ). The Most
Beautiful Girl, a Grammy-winning song and record, has become one of the
most performed songs in Country music.
Original Italian Words and
Music by Giulio Rapetti, Elio Cesari, Alberto Testa
English lyrics by Robert I. Allen
Originally a popular Italian song,
this intriguing tune was titled 'Un Uomo Tra la Folla', which
translates roughly to 'A Man Against the Crowd', or, perhaps, 'One
Man in Many'. But Robert I. Allen took what writers Renis, Mogol and
Testa had composed and made it right for Perry. It's the old eternal triangle
again, with Perry singing the role of the guy in the odd corner, trying to
keep his love, despite what the other man has told her.
Music by Evelyn Danzig and lyrics by Jack Segal , 1949
Featuring a most
appealing melody and a very sentimental set of lyrics, "Scarlet Ribbons"
came into the world in 1949 with a recording by Juanita Hall ( who played
Bloody Mary in "South Pacific" ). Harry Belafonte had a big-selling
recording of it in 1956. It was much beloved by cafe performers and folk
singers, because the story of the scarlet ribbons that appeared on the
little girl's bed in answer to her prayers never failed to move audiences.
And when the singer is Perry Como, the song becomes an extra treat , because
Perry sings it slowly and sweetly, and holds those whole notes beautifully ,
as only he can.
'The Big Show'
was American radio network's dying gasp in the late 1940s, but what a gasp
it was. Tallulah Bankhead was MC, and Fred Allen, Groucho Marx, and Meredith
Willson were regulars. At the end of each show Miss Bankhead spoke the
ltrics to this song over the melody played by Mr. Willson's orchestra. Composer
Willson said that the inspiration for the song came from his mother , who
was a Sunday school teacher. Perry's version, simple and direct, was very
popular when he performed it on his own TV show.
Simplicity and sincerity again are
evident in every bar of this beautiful 19th-century Welsh song. It is a
credit to Perry that he can perform such inspirational music without losing
any of its credibility. His religious beliefs and devotion to family life
are well known and an inspiration on their own. He always included on his
weekly TV show an inspirational song or two, which fit in perfectly with his
own character and personality.
Frank Westphal was a bandleader in the
Midwest during the early part of this century. His orchestra concentrated on
patriotic songs and sentimental ballads, including Westphal's own
composition, 'When You Come to the End of the Day'. The immortal Gus
Kahn, whose lyrics grace such classics as 'My Isle of Golden Dreams', 'My
Buddy', 'I'll See You in My Dreams', and 'The Waltz You saved for Me', wrote
the words for Westphal's melody. The mood of peace created by the song had
enchanted audiences everywhere.
Words and Music by Ervin Drake, Irvin Graham,
Jimmy Shirl and Al Stillman
The team of writer's
and composers working on Jane Froman's TV Show 'USA Canteen' in 1952 was
asked to come up with a song Miss Froman could popularize. Because the
show's mail indicated that people were very concerned about the Korean
War, writer Erwin Drake recalled: "We thought we might be able to
write a kind of song that would give the average person hope." And
what a song it was. "I Believe" became a million-seller for
Frankie Laine. And practically every singer has performed it. Perry's
version is almost like a hymn; he sings it with fervour and with a
soaring, open-voiced sound that is beautiful to hear.
Words and Music by Helen Taylor and May H. Morgan
( a.k.a. Brahe ), 1927
'My oldest is 36', Perry noted recently, 'but
when either of us enters or leaves a house, we hug and kiss. We all do. I
think husbands and wives, parents and children, should always show their
love for each other.' And more than any other song in this album, 'Bless
This House' displays clearly the sincerity and depth of Perry's feelings
about home and family life. It dates back to 1927, when two Englishwomen,
poetess Helen Taylor and composer May H. Brae, published a hymn called
'Bless the House'. Irish tenor John McCormack heard their song , liked
it, added it to his repertoire and started it on the road to popularity. But
first he suggested that the title and words be changed to the way this
favourite is sung today.
Music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by
Oscar Hammerstein II
The closing song in this Collection is a rare
treat, drawn from the only LP Perry has recorded in performance. That
appearance, at the International Hotel in Las Vegas in July of 1970, was
Perry's first nightclub performance in 27 years, and the entire engagement
was sold out weeks in advance. Judging by the applause the stunning
performance of this fine ballad from 'Carousel', with its dramatic high-note
ending, received, it was an engagement to remember. This exciting version of
one of Rodgers and Hammerstein's most inspiring songs is a delightful
souvenir of that event . . . and a fitting climax to a Collection that
features an artist who can truly be described as 'The Incomparable Como.'
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