 
RCA CAMDEN
CAL- 551 MONAURAL
( K3PP-2064/65
)
ASSEMBLED 1959
On a Saturday night in September 1955, NBC unveiled "The Perry Como Show." The success of the program was immediate, with critics and public agreeing that the Como brand of easy-going entertainment was a viewer’s delight. In fact, toward the end of the show’s first season, it was not uncommon to hear the sixth evening of the week referred to as Perry Como Night. In 1959, with four successful seasons behind him, Perry moved from Saturday to Wednesday. In all its aspects, "Perry Como’s Wednesday Night Music Hall" continues to serve as one of the favorite pastimes of the viewing public. There is still a Perry Como Night; it’s just been moved up three days. It goes without saying that the main reason for the show’s continuing success lies in its star. But you would never know it to talk to Perry. "You feel sort of silly being praised for doing just what everyone else does," he once said. Most people would disagree with that. When Perry puts over a song there is a sense of peace and calm — a feeling, such as no one else conveys, that all is right with the world The songs Perry sings in this album reflect the relaxed atmosphere of the Wednesday proceedings. He has chosen twelve numbers, all of which lend themselves neatly to the Como touch. Three of the tunes are the work of Rodgers and Hammerstein. Two of them, So Far and A Fellow Needs a Girl, were first heard in the 1947 Broadway production "Allegro." The other R & H confection, Keep It Gay, owes its origin to the 1954 musical tribute to the theater, "Me and Juliet." Jerome Kern is represented by the classic All Through the Day. The song was written for the 1945 film "Centennial Summer," and was the last hit composed by Kern. Love of My Life is a Cole Porter inspiration written for the movie "The Pirate." Roses of Picardy was written in England as a paean to British soldiers fighting in France. As the United States drew closer to entering World War I, the song grew in popularity over here. That it has become an all-time classic is due to the sincerity of its lyrics and the enduring loveliness of its melody. When You’re Smiling is another oldie, having been composed in 1928. The rest of the album’s tunes are pop hits of varying moods which have appeared during the 1940s and ‘50s. An observer at a recording session once remarked that Perry sings as if each song were written especially for him. Listening to a Como interpretation of a well-loved ballad, this opinion seems more than understandable. It seems to fit the living legend which the nation is able to confirm and admire each week come "Wednesday Night Music Hall" Time. Copyright 1959, Radio Corporation of America
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