Customer Review (original 1999 Amazon Review updated)

The title of this compilation is a bit of a misnomer because some of the tracks included here were feature releases from several of Perry's RCA Victor albums. In addition, there are many singles not included more deserving of the term "essential" than some of the tracks chosen here. Hopefully, they may emerge within a follow-up second volume. The good news is that these tracks have been re-mastered from original first-generation sources and every one of them in real living stereo, many for the first time ever!

The pick of this collection is Perry's original single version of "The Father of Girls", recorded in December, 1967, released here for the first time in stereo. Many ardent Como fans are unaware that Perry re-recorded the vocal track of this song for release within the 1968 album "Look to Your Heart" and that the original recording has remained unreleased for all these years. Up to now, the re-release of this song has been the album version (excepting one instance in the UK in monaural only) and this has been unfortunate because his performance of the original is particularly poignant.

Another gem within this collection is the 1959 recorded original flip side of "Delaware", a very touching performance of "I Know What God Is" that greatly benefits from the quality of this release and its first release in real stereo. If you remember these songs from the 1960s, you'll be delighted with what you hear from this collection.

Some of the songs have slightly different mixes than the original release and, in one instance, there's an alternate `take' of "That's All This Old World Needs" never released before. But the differences are not material and only serve to offer a little fun for Como fans in determining which they are.

This is the most original mix of Perry Como singles and select album tracks released on compact disc. The quality of engineering is better than anything the original labels have produced. This is due to one very simple reason: the recording engineer who assembled these tracks has taken considerable effort to ferret out the original first-generation tapes, to re-mix and re-master them as they should be, straight clean and simple!

BMG/Sony has a great deal to learn from this third-party record label! If you buy this set and like it, please write to the label and tell them. We need more recordings of this caliber from legendary artists such as Perry Como.

By supporting and encouraging independent labels who do good work, such as this, we should get more of them.

Updated and modified from an original Amazon review (December 1999) by the writer September 2017.

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