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Magic Moments Filled with Love: Perry Como Celebrated On Public Television, New Box Set and More

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May 18, 2018 would have marked Perry Como's 106th birthday.  While the beloved singer didn't make it to 106, he lived a full 88 years which he packed with magic moments on records, film, television, and the world's concert stages.  All told, the proudly Italian-American crooner notched 131 chart hits in the U.S. alone, over 20 gold records, multiple Emmy and Grammy Awards, a Kennedy Center Honor, and sales of over 100 million records between 1945 and 1970.  This weekend, fans are invited to celebrate his remarkable career with a television special debut and a pair of new commemorative CD releases.

For the very first time, a collection of Perry's biggest hits and fan favorites from long-lost and newly-restored episodes from his TV series -- including rare color programs and more recently discovered footage -- is being presented in a tribute to air nationwide on Public Television. Hosted by Peter Marshall and Nick Clooney, Perry Como Classics: Till the End of Time is part of special programming premiering on PBS stations this weekend (June 2-3, 2018) with additional airings in many areas through June 10.  This program is part of the MY MUSIC fund-raising "pledge" shows for Public Television presented by series Creator/Executive Producer TJ Lubinsky and produced by Jim Pierson and JoAnn Young.


Bing appears on PERRY COMO CLASSICS - TILL THE END OF TIME

Como's enduring classics such as "It's Impossible," "Catch a Falling Star," "Some Enchanted Evening," "Magic Moments," "Round and Round," "Home for the Holidays," "And I Love You So," "No Other Love," "Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom)" and many more made the smalltown barber from Canonsburg, Pennsylvania the second most popular male singer of the 20th century on the record charts, ahead of Tony Bennett and Frank Sinatra and just behind his early singing inspiration (and later, his friend) Bing Crosby.

Few artists made as much of an impact on television as Perry Como.  He was a small screen mainstay for over 40 years, beginning with his hosting duties in the late 1940s on The Chesterfield Supper Club and continuing through the early 1990s in series and specials that truly set the standard for variety programming.  That tradition is reflected on Perry Como Classics: Till the End of Time.  A star-studded array of familiar faces is on hand to celebrate Mr. C's legacy, including Carol Burnett, Regis Philbin, Jay Leno, Kathy Lennon (of The Lennon Sisters), Leonard Maltin, Richard Carpenter, Debby Boone, Steve Tyrell, Kaye Ballard, and others.

PERRY COMO CLASSICS: TILL THE END OF TIME (MY MUSIC) features these performances:

  • "Till the End of Time" - #1 (1945)
  • "I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now" - #2 (1947)
  • "Some Enchanted Evening" - #1 (1949)
  • "No Other Love" - #1 (1953)
  • "Temptation" - #1 (1945)
  • "Prisoner of Love" - #1 (1946)
  • "Don't Let the Stars Get In Your Eyes" - #1 (1952)
  • "Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom)" - #1 (1956)
  • "Round & Round" - #1 (1957)
  • "Magic Moments" - #4 (1957)
  • "(There's No Place Like) Home for the Holidays" - #8 (1954)
  • "And I Love You So" - #1 AC (1973)
  • "Catch a Falling Star" - #1 (1958)
  • "It's Impossible" - #10 (1970)
  • "Everybody Loves Somebody" with Dean Martin
  • "Sugar Time" with The McGuire Sisters

The PBS-only DVD release of the broadcast program also offers bonus material not seen on television including additional interviews, extended performances and Perry duets with Rosemary Clooney, Patti Page, Carol Burnett and Bing Crosby.

Perry Como, Lena Horne, and Dean Martin. Dean and Lena appear on PERRY COMO CLASSICS - TILL THE END OF TIME. (Photo courtesy TJL/Roncom)

And that's not all.  Two new commemorative and exclusive PBS Perry CD titles are simultaneously arriving in conjunction with this program.  A new, deluxe 4-CD, 100-song anthology, Greatest Hits & Magic Moments, celebrates the artist whose easygoing charm, reassuring voice, and abundance of heart continues to earn him fans today.  This comprehensive overview of Como's top ten hits (including fourteen # 1s) and other highlights also premieres fourteen never-before-heard outtakes from the RCA Victor vaults, such as his very first solo recording, "Secretly," and duets with Betty Hutton and The Ames Brothers.  Many more rarities appear, as well, such as Marvin Hamlisch and Paul Williams' "Lovers, Kids and Fools," and Jerry Herman's "Song on the Sand" from the Broadway musical La Cage Aux Folles.  In short, this is the ultimate collectors' anthology drawing on every period of Perry's extraordinary life in song.

No Perry Como celebration would be complete with the music of Christmas, however, and so Greatest Hits & Magic Moments is joined by the separate, single-disc release of Perry's beloved yuletide albums Season's Greetings from Perry Como (1959) and The Perry Como Christmas Album (1968), paired together for the first time and expanded with both sides of the 1967 single "Christmas Bells" b/w "Love is a Christmas Rose."  Both CDs feature new liner notes by The Second Disc's Joe Marchese and have been newly remastered at Sony's Battery Studios.

Check your local listings for the My Music presentation of Perry Como Classics: Till the End of Time on Public Television premiering this weekend.  Be sure to check out both CD releases which are available as a pledge now at this link from WNET Thirteen New York or from any other favorite Public Television station of your choice across the country.

Perry Como, Greatest Hits and Magic Moments: The Ultimate Anthology (TJL, 2018)

CD 1

  1. Secretly (rec. 6/20/43) (*)
  2. Long Ago (And Far Away) - Rec. 2/4/44 Rel. RCA Single 20-1569-B U.S. No. 8
  3. I Dream Of You (More That You Dream I Do) - Rec. 12/8/44 Rel. RCA Single 20-1629-A U.S. No. 10
  4. Temptation - Rec. 3/27/45 Rel. RCA Single 20-1658-B U.S. No. 15
  5. If I Loved You - Rec. 5/9/45 Rel. RCA Single 20-1676-B U.S. No. 3
  6. I'm Gonna Love That Gal (Like She's Never Been Loved Before) - Rec. 5/19/45 Rel. RCA Single 20-1676-A U.S. No. 4
  7. Till The End Of Time - Rec. 7/3/45 Rel. RCA Single 20-1709-A U.S. No. 1
  8. (Did You Ever Get) That Feeling In The Moonlight Rec. 7/3/45 Rel. RCA Single 20-1709-B U.S. No. 9
  9. Dig You Later (A Hubba-Hubba-Hubba) - Rec. 10/13/45 Rel. RCA Single 20-1750-A U.S. No. 3
  10. I'm Always Chasing Rainbows - Rec. 10/17/45 Rel. RCA Single 20-1788-B U.S. No. 5
  11. You Won't Be Satisfied (Until You Break My Heart) - Rec. 10/17/45 Rel. RCA Single 20-1788-A U.S. No. 5
  12. Prisoner of Love - Rec. 12/18/45 Rel. RCA Single 20-1814-B U.S. No. 1
  13. All Through the Day - Rec. 12/18/45 Rel. RCA Single 20-1814-A U.S. No. 8
  14. They Say It's Wonderful - Rec. 4/2/46 Rel. RCA Single 20-1857-A U.S. No. 4
  15. Surrender - Rec. 4/2/46 Rel. RCA Single 20-1877-A U.S. No. 1
  16. Sonata - Rec. 10/17/46 Rel. RCA Single 20-2033-B U.S. No. 9
  17. Winter Wonderland - Rec. 8/1/46 Rel. RCA Single 20-1968-B U.S. No. 10
  18. Chi Baba, Chi Baba (My Bambino Go To Sleep) - Rec. 4/10/47 Rel. RCA Single 20-2259-A, U.S. No. 1
  19. When You Were Sweet Sixteen - Rec. 4/10/47 Rel. RCA Single 20-2259-B U.S. No. 2
  20. I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now - Rec. 5/29/47 Rel. RCA Single 20-2315-B U.S. No. 2
  21. Because - Rec. 12/2/47 Rel. RCA Single 20-2653-A U.S. No. 4
  22. Far Away Places - Rec. 12/14/48 Rel. RCA Single 20-3316-A U.S. No. 4
  23. Forever and Ever - Rec. 1/13/49 Rel. RCA Single 20-3347-A U.S. No. 2
  24. "A" You're Adorable - Rec. 3/1/49 Rel. RCA Single 20-3381-A  U.S. No. 2
  25. Some Enchanted Evening - Rec. 3/1/49 Rel. RCA Single 20-3402-A U.S. No. 1
  26. Bali Ha'i - rec. 3/1/49 RCA single 20-3402-B U.S. No. 5

CD 2

  1. Let's Take An Old-Fashioned Walk - Rec. 5/24/49 Rel. RCA Single 20-3469-B U.S. No. 15
  2. A Dreamer's Holiday - Rec. 8/11/49 Rel. RCA Single 20-3543-B U.S. No. 3
  3. My Child (12/1/49) (*)
  4. Hoop-Dee-Doo - Rec. 3/16/50 Rel. RCA Single 20-3747-A U.S. No. 1
  5. Patricia - Rec. 8/10/50 Rel. RCA Single 20-3905-A U.S. No. 7
  6. A Bushel And A Peck - Rec. 9/12/50 Rel. RCA Single 20-3930-A U.S. No. 3
  7. You're Just in Love (I Wonder Why) - Rec. 9/26/50 Rel. RCA Single 20-3945-A U.S. No. 5
  8. If - Rec. 11/28/50 Rel. RCA Single 20-3997-A U.S. No. 10
  9. Please Mr. Sun - Rec. 12/18/51 Rel. RCA Single 20-4453-A  U.S. No. 12
  10. Maybe - Rec. 5/13/52 Rel. RCA Single 20-4744-A U.S. No. 3
  11. The Last Straw - with Betty Hutton (rec. 6/19/52) (*)
  12. Don't Let The Stars Get In Your Eyes - Rec. 11/4/52 Rel. RCA Single 20-5064-A U.S. No. 1/U.K. No. 1
  13. Wild Horses - Rec. 1/6/53 Rel. RCA Single 20-5152-A U.S. No. 6
  14. Say You're Mine Again - Rec. 3/28/53 Rel. RCA Single 20-5277-A U.S. No. 3
  15. My One And Only Heart - Rec. 3/28/53 Rel. RCA Single 20-5277-B U.S. No. 11
  16. No Other Love - Rec. 5/19/53 Rel. RCA Single 20-5317-A U.S. No. 1
  17. You Alone - Rec. 8/19/53 Rel. RCA Single 20-5447-A U.S. No. 9
  18. I'll Love Nobody Else But You (rec. 1953) (*)
  19. Wanted - Rec. 10/29/53 Rel. RCA Single 20-5647-A U.S. No. 1/UK No. 4
  20. Hopelessly - with The Ames Brothers (rec. 7/14/54) (*)
  21. Don't Ask Me Why (rec. 9/2/54) (*)
  22. Papa Loves Mambo - Rec. 8/31/54 Rel. RCA Single 20-5857-A U.S. No. 4/UK No. 16
  23. (There's No Place Like) Home For The Holidays - Rec. 11/16/54 Rel. RCA Single 20-5950-B, U.S. No. 8
  24. Ko Ko Mo (I Love You So) - Rec. 1/4/55 Rel. RCA Single 20-5994-A U.S. No. 2
  25. Tina Marie - Rec. 6/21/55 Rel. RCA Single 20-6192 U.S. No. 5/U.K. No. 24
  26. All At Once You Love Her (rec. 9/27/55) RCA Single RCA 47-6294-A U.S. No. 11

CD 3

  1. Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom) - Rec. 2/2/56 Rel. RCA Single 20-6427 U.S. No. 1/UK No. 4
  2. Juke Box Baby - Rec. 2/2/56 Rel. RCA Single 20-6427 U.S. No. 10/U.K. No. 22
  3. More - Rec. 5/8/56 Rel. RCA Single 20-6554 U.S. No. 4/U.K. No. 10
  4. Glendora - Rec. 5/8/56 Rel. RCA Single 20-6554 U.S. No. 8/U.K. No. 18
  5. Dream Along With Me (I'm On My Way To A Star) - Rec. 6/7/56 Rel. RCA Single 20-6590, U.S. No. 85
  6. Round and Round - Rec. 1/15/57 Rel. RCA Single 20-6815 U.S. No. 1
  7. Sad and Lonely (7/1/57) (*)
  8. Just Born (To Be Your Baby) - Rec. 7/1/57 Rel. RCA Single 20-7050 U.S. No. 12
  9. Catch a Falling Star - Rec. 10/9/57 Rel. RCA Single 20-7128 U.S. No. 1/.U.K No. 9
  10. Magic Moments - Rec. 10/3/57 Rel. RCA Single 20-7128 U.S. No. 4/U.K. No. 1
  11. Kewpie Doll - Rec. 3/4/58 Rel. RCA Single 20-7202 U.S. No. 6/U.K. No. 9
  12. Sow the Seeds of Happiness (rec. 1958) (*)
  13. If and When (rec. 1958) (*)
  14. Trouble Comes (rec. 12/17/58) (*)
  15. I Can't Remember (rec. 12/28/59) (*)
  16. Delaware - Rec. 12/28/59 Rel. RCA Single 47-7670 U.S. No. 22/U.K. No. 3
  17. It All Depends on You (rec. 5/15/61) (*)
  18. Back in Your Own Backyard (rec. 5/17/61) (*)
  19. Once Upon a Time (rec. 6/14/62) (from By Request, RCA LSP-2567, 1962)
  20. Caterina - Rec. 2/14/62 Rel. RCA Single 47-7670 U.S. No. 23/AC No. 6
  21. One More Mountain (single B-side) Rec. 5/1/63 Rel. RCA Single 47-8186-B
  22. Dream On Little Dreamer - Rec. 2/11/65 Rel. RCA Single 47-8533 & The Scene Changes RCA LP LSP 3396 U.S. No. 25/AC No. 3
  23. Love Theme from La Strada (rec. 5/11/66) rel. Perry Como in Italy, RCA LP LSP-3608, 1966
  24. Stop! And Think It Over - Rec. 2/15/67 Rel. RCA Single 47-9165 U.S. No. 92/AC No. 1
  25. The Father of Girls - Rec. 6/19/68 Rel. Look to Your Heart RCA LP LSP 4052, 1968 U.S. No. 92/AC No. 10
  26. My Cup Runneth Over (rec. 6/12/68) Rel. Look to Your Heart RCA LP LSP 4052, 1968
  27. Seattle (rec. 10/1/68) Rel. RCA single 47-9722 & Seattle RCA LP LSP 4183 U.S. No. 38/AC No. 2

CD 4

  1. It's Impossible - Rec. 5/6/70 Rel. RCA Single 74-0387 & It's Impossible RCA LP LSP 4473 U.S. No. 10/AC No. 1/UK No. 4
  2. I Think of You - Rec. 1/14/71 Rel. RCA Single 74-0444 & I Think of You RCA LP LSP 4539 U.S. No. 53/AC No. 5/UK No. 14
  3. And I Love You So - Rec. btw Jan and April 1973 Rel. RCA Single 74-0906 & And I Love You So RCA LP APL1-0100 U.S. No. 29/AC No. 1/U.K. No. 3
  4. For the Good Times - Rec. 3/26/73 Rel. And I Love You So RCA LP APL1-0100 U.K. No. 7
  5. Love Don't Care (Where It Grows) - Rec. 8/9/73 Rel. RCA Single APB0-0096-A & U.S. No. 106/No. 16 AC
  6. Temptation (rec. 4/29/74) from RCA single PB-10045/Perry, RCA LP CPL1-0585, 1974 AC No. 28
  7. I Don't Know What He Told You - Rec. 1/7/74 Rel. RCA Single APB0-0274-A & Perry RCA LP APL1-0585 AC No. 8
  8. The Hands of Time (rec. 1/4/74) from Perry RCA LP APL1-0585
  9. Christmas Dream - Rec. 8/7/74 Rel. RCA Single PB-10122 & Original Soundtrack Music from "Odessa File" MCA LP 2084 U.S. No. 92
  10. Just Out Of Reach - Rec. 5/27/75 Rel. RCA Single PB-10402 & Just Out of Reach RCA LP APL1-0863 U.S. Country No. 100/AC No. 24
  11. My Days of Loving You (rec. 8/11/76) rel. RCA single PB-10894-A, 1977
  12. Lovers, Kids & Fools - Rec. 8/11/76 Rel. RCA Single PB-10894-B, 1977
  13. Everything (rec. 8/11/76) (*)
  14. Where Is Love - Rec. June 6, 7, 10, 1977 Rel. The Best of British RCA LP AFL1-2373, 1977
  15. Smile - Rec. 1977 Rel. The Best of British RCA LP AFL1-2373, 1977
  16. When I Wanted You - Rec. Dec 10, 11, 1978 Rel. RCA Single PB-11434-A, 1978
  17. Forever - Rec. Dec 10, 11 1979 Rel. RCA Single PB-11434-B, 1978
  18. The Best of Times (single version) - Rec. Oct. 17, 18, 1983 Rel. RCA Single PB-13690-B, 1983
  19. Song on the Sand - Rec. Oct. 17, 18, 1983 Rel. RCA Single PB-13690-B, 1983
  20. The Wind Beneath My Wings -Rec. Feb 2, 3, 1987 Rel. Perry Como Today RCA Album 6368-1-R, 1987
  21. I Wish It Could Be Christmas Forever (rec. October 1981) rel. I Wish It Could Be Christmas Forever, RCA LP AYL1-4526, 1982

(*) denotes previously unreleased track

Perry Como, Season's Greetings from Perry Como/The Perry Como Christmas Album

  1. (There's No Place Like) Home for the Holidays
  2. Winter Wonderland
  3. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
  4. The Christmas Song
  5. Santa Claus is Comin' to Town
  6. White Christmas
  7. Here We Come A-Caroling/We Wish You a Merry Christmas
  8. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
  9. O Holy Night
  10. The Story of the First Christmas: O Little Town of Bethlehem/Come, Come, Come to the Manger/The First Noel/O Come All Ye Faithful/We Three Kings of Orient Are/Silent Night
  11. Christmas Eve
  12. Do You Hear What I Hear
  13. Christ is Born
  14. The Little Drummer Boy
  15. There's No Christmas Like a Home Christmas
  16. O Holy Night
  17. Caroling, Caroling/The First Noel/Hark! The Herald Angels Sing/Silent Night
  18. Silver Bells
  19. Toyland
  20. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
  21. Ave Maria
  22. Christmas Bells
  23. Love is a Christmas Rose

Tracks 1-10 from Season's Greetings from Perry Como, RCA Victor LSP-2066, 1959
Tracks 11-21 from The Perry Como Christmas Album, RCA Victor LSP-4016, 1968
Tracks 22-23 from RCA single 47-9367, 1967

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Comments

  1. Again a fantastic piece of work by executive producer TJ Lubinsky.
    Too bad this isn't available commercially (outside the US), although I get the idea behind the pledge fund-raising series to benefit the US PBS stations.

    Reply

  2. NO ONE has been so horribly overlooked and (till now) almost forgotten as poor Perry! I won't go into the reasons why this has happened so as not to add negativity to this celebration. However, this truly is something to indeed celebrate.

    I never have gotten in to the PBS pledge/purchase thing. However this time I shall gladly do so to get this mega box set production.

    Perry deserves it. He was a WONDERFUL man!

    Reply

    • Thanks, Paul! I hope you enjoy it. The television special and CDs were a true labor of love for everybody involved, and I can't begin to tell you how exciting it was to unearth so many wonderful outtakes - all beautifully remastered at Battery in New York.

      Reply

  3. I'm going to have to buy this. This looks like a GREAT set. (Though I wish it had the Betty Hutton duet "She's a Lady," which has never appeared an an official CD.) Great job!

    Reply

    • Brian, you can find "She's a Lady" on a 2-CD set called "This is Where I Came in" - Standards and Rarities. It's a compilation of Perry's early work put together in 2013. It has a lot of good songs on it that I had never found before, including that one with Betty Hutton. I believe I got it from Amazon. You should check it out.

      Reply

    • "She's a Lady" sung by Perry and Betty Hutton can be found on the 2-CD set "Standards and Rarities" by Perry which I got on Amazon a few years ago. It was compiled in 2013. You should definitely check that out. Hope you find this helpful.

      Reply

  4. Will you eventually be able to get the box set on Amazon elsewhere besides the pledge drive?

    Reply

    • Hi Robert,

      Unfortunately, these sets are only made possible because of the pledge initiatives. I can confirm that there are no plans for a future commercial release, and one would be highly unlikely.

      Reply

    • Hi Paul, the CD set has been overseen with Sony Music by PBS producer Jim Pierson who has also spearheaded other recent Como projects such as the CD debuts of the Look To Your Heart and Just Out Of Reach albums in expanded editions offering rare singles, first-time stereo releases, and previously unissued tracks. Additionally, I was proud to have assisted in these passion projects to make more Perry music available in quality presentations.

      Reply

  6. I agree Perry has been overlooked by Sony/BMG, which largely concentrates on the same well-known songs over and over. I look forward to the previously unissued tracks in this set, but how much nicer if it wasn't going to cost $150 to get them. And I do regret that Perry's duet of "To Know You" with Betty Hutton wasn't included. Like "The Last Straw," it wasn't released, but recorded at the same session. (Perry remade "To Know You" with the Fontane Sisters, which did get released.)

    A minor correction. "Song on the Sand" has been released on CD, in the U.K. RCA compilation THE BEST OF TIMES, which also includes the single version of that LA CAGE AUX FOLLES song. (Which Perry recorded again for his 1987 album TODAY.)

    Reply

  7. Joe,

    My DVD/CD package arrived yesterday and I must tell you I am THRILLEd at the contents (at least physically). I have not had a chance to dive into the massive 100 recordings plus the Christmas CD yet, but I did peruse the liner notes, etc. and I must thank you for what appears to be an EXCELLENT set of liner notes. I can't wait to get the chance to dive into the reading and listening...and ENJOYING!

    Hey, it's 6/24 on Sunday...6 months till Christmas Eve. An excellent time to start off with the Christmas CD and do a "Christmas in July"!

    Thanks again for the great work you do.

    P.S. I am also loving the new Mathis re-releases. Great work.

    Reply

    • Thanks so much for the kind words, Paul! They're truly appreciated. Hope you enjoy all of the beautiful music!

      Reply

      • I've heard that for some unknown reason the NYC people won't be getting theirs until after July 8th! That's OK...it is worth the wait, Rich.

        Reply

        • If it's any consolation, Rich, I haven't seen a copy of the set yet - and I worked on it! 🙂 I know that the good people at TJL's fulfillment house are working overtime to fulfill the orders in as expeditious a manner as possible. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts once the set arrives!

          Reply

          • So is this set surpassing the amount of sales than was expected? If so that bodes well for future Perry product....maybe.

            Reply

          • My set arrived last week -- my God did they do a wonderful job on assembling this fantastic DVD/5 CD set !!!

            Reply

  8. Hello,

    I've just read about Perry Como: Greatest Hits and Magic Moments, The Ultimate Anthology. I'm very excited to here of this 4 CD set and looking at the track listing I can see you've worked very hard to ensure there are a number of previously unreleased tracks.

    When is this set going to be available in the UK, particularly from Amazon.

    I've been listening and buying Perry Como albums since 1974 and attended his Royal Festival Hall concert 6th April 1975 when I was only 17. In fact I missed my football teams (Ipswich Town) first ever FA Cup Semi Final on the day of Perry's concert.

    I would be wonderful for all of Perry's UK fans to have an opportunity to purchase this set.

    I look forward to your reply.

    Steve Bosanquet

    Reply

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