Honey, Honey ( Bless Your Heart )

Music by Larry Stock and lyrics by Dominick Belline

Roncom Music Limited

First recording 1957:

With "Como's Little Combo" a section of Mitchell Ayres' Orchestra

Recorded at RCA Victor Studio 3, 155 East 24th Street, New York City

A&R Producer: Ed O. Welker

Recording Engineer: not listed

Final Recording Time 2:39

Recorded February 19, 1957 ~ Matrix No. H2PB 1781 Take ( To Follow )

Leader: Mitchell Ayres

Contractor: Henry "Hank" Ross

Sax ~ Abraham Richman

Trombone ~ Eddie Bert

Piano ~ Henry Rowland

Guitar ~ Danny Perri

Guitar ~ Anthony "Tony" Mottola

Drums ~ Robert Haggart

Bass ~ Terry Snyder

Album issue: RCA-LP12 "We Get Letters" LPM-1463 MONO SEPTEMBER 1957

Album issue: RCA-45RPM EP "We Get Letters Vol. 1" EPA 1-1463 MONO SEPTEMBER 1957

. . . a cross-section of the requests that Perry Como sings on his weekly TV show. The style is relaxed, the backgrounds ( by a section of the Mitchell Ayres' orchestra known during the recording sessions as "Como's Little Combo" ) are light and easy, and Perry's singing is, as always, superb.

Perry Como ~ We Get Letters original album

| Lyrics | Album Notes | Session | 1959 Lyrics | Album Links | CD-Finder |

Second recording 1959:

With Mitchell Ayres' Orchestra

Arrangements by Joe Lipman and Jack Andrews

Produced by Charles Grean and Lee Schapiro

Recorded in RCA Victor's Studio A, New York City

Recording Engineer: Bob Simpson

Final Recording Time 2:00

Recorded April 16th, 1959 ~ Matrix No. K2PB-2330 Take 2

SESSION MUSICIANS

April 16, 1959

Produced by Charles Grean and Lee Schapiro

Orchestra

Leader: Mitchell Ayres

Contractor: Henry "Hank" Ross

Sax ~ Harry Terrill

Sax ~ Bernard Kaufman

Sax ~ Sid Jekowsky

Sax ~ Philip Zolkind

Sax ~ Romeo Penque

Trumpet ~ James Maxwell

Trumpet ~ Bernie Glow

Trumpet ~ James Milazzo

Trumpet ~ John Lawson

Trombone ~ Robert Byrne

Trombone ~ John D'agostino

Trombone ~ Richard Hixon

Trombone ~ Jack Satterfield

Violin ~ Sylvan Shulman

Violin ~ Jack Zayde

Violin ~ Raoul Poliskin

Violin ~ Felix Orlewitz

Violin ~ Tosha Samaroff

Violin ~ Mac Ceppos

Violin ~ Harry Melnikoff

Violin ~ Harry Glickman

Violin ~ Samuel Rand

Violin ~ Max Hollander

Violin ~ Charles Fleischmann

Violin ~ Marc Brown

Viola ~ Howard Kay

Viola ~ Isadore Zir

Viola ~ Leon Frengut

Cello ~ Maurice Brown

Cello ~ Abram Borodkin

Cello ~ Charles McCracken

Piano ~ Henry Rowland

Guitar ~ Anthony "Tony" Mottola

Guitar ~ Danny Perri

Drums ~ Terry Snyder

Drums ~ Sol Gubin

Bass ~ Robert Haggart

Album issue: RCA-LP12 "Como Swings" LSP-2010 STEREO SEPTEMBER 1959

| Lyrics | Album Notes | Session | 1957 Lyrics | Album Links | CD-Finder |

Notes: ~ two very different versions of this song generally believed to have been co-written by a relative of Mr. Como, Dominick Belline. The first version, recorded in February 1957 for the "We Get Letters" album, was low-key and intimate while the second version, recorded two years later for the "Como Swings" album, is up-tempo and big-band. Not just the styles were different for these two recordings. The two album sessions marked the end of the monaural era and the beginning of the stereophonic recording standard. The up-tempo recordings for "Como Swings" were not just simply showing off Perry's ability to swing but rather the new era of big stereo productions. Three full stereo albums came out of this period including, "Saturday Night with Mr. C." and "When You Come to the End of the Day" which were released in 1958 and "Como Swings" released in 1959. The first and the latter were spectacular show pieces but the middle one, "When You Come to the End of the Day" must really be heard in stereo to be fully appreciated and is perhaps Perry's finest vocal performance from the 1950s. The second best performance, ironically, was probably the album sessions for "We Get Letters" that would have benefited tremendously had it been recorded in stereo.