The Perry Como Christmas Album
Encyclopedia
The Perry Como Christmas Album was Perry Como's
15th RCA Victor 12" long-play album, the 13th recorded in full "living" stereophonic sound and the fourth featuring Dynagroove
technology.
Como is accompanied on the album by the Ray Charles Singers and an orchestra arranged and conducted by Nick Perito
.
Side 2
Como also recorded a rendition of the Wihla Hutson-Alfred Burt composition "Some Children See Him" during the sessions, but this was omitted from the finished album, presumably due to space limitations. The track remained unreleased until its inclusion on a 1999 CD
compilation of Como Christmas recordings.
Perry Como
Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como was an American singer and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century he recorded exclusively for the RCA Victor label after signing with them in 1943. "Mr...
15th RCA Victor 12" long-play album, the 13th recorded in full "living" stereophonic sound and the fourth featuring Dynagroove
Dynagroove
Dynagroove is a recording process introduced in 1963 exclusive to RCA Victor that, for the first time, used computers to modify the audio signal fed to the recording stylus of a phonograph record to make the groove shape conform to the tracing requirements of the playback stylus...
technology.
Como is accompanied on the album by the Ray Charles Singers and an orchestra arranged and conducted by Nick Perito
Nick Perito
Nicholas Perito was a Hollywood composer and arranger and, for 40 years, the closest collaborator of singer Perry Como.-Early years:...
.
Track listing
Side 1- "Christmas Eve" (Music by Gerard Andre Biesel and lyrics by Ray Charles)
- "Do You Hear What I Hear?Do You Hear What I Hear?"Do You Hear What I Hear?" is a Christmas song written in October 1962 with lyrics by Noël Regney and music by Gloria Shayne Baker. The pair were married at the time, and wrote it as a plea for peace during the Cuban Missile Crisis...
" (Words and Music by Noël RegneyNoel RegneyNoël Regney , World War II veteran and French songwriter, composed the Christmas standard "Do You Hear What I Hear?" with his then-wife Gloria Shayne Baker in 1962. Originally from Alsace, France, he moved to New York City and then eventually Connecticut, where he lived out the remainder of his life...
and Gloria Shayne BakerGloria Shayne BakerGloria Shayne Baker was an American composer and songwriter best known for composing the "Do You Hear What I Hear?" Christmas carol in 1962 with her then husband, Noël Regney.-Early life:...
) - "Christ Is Born" (Words and Music by Domenico BartolucciDomenico BartolucciDomenico Bartolucci is an Italian Cardinal of the Catholic Church. He is Director Emeritus of the Sistine Chapel Choir and the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, and is recognized in the field of music both as a director and a prolific composer...
and Ray Charles) - "The Little Drummer Boy" (Words and Music by Henry Onerati, Katherine Davis and Harry SimeoneHarry SimeoneHarry Moses Simeone was a distinguished music arranger, conductor and composer, best known for arranging the famous Christmas song "The Little Drummer Boy", for which he received co-writing credit.-Early years:Harry grew up listening to stars performing at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City,...
) - "There is No Christmas Like a Home Christmas" (Words and Music by Carl SigmanCarl SigmanCarl Sigman was an American songwriter.-Biography:Born in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, New York, Sigman graduated from law school and passed his Bar exams to practice in the state of New York...
and Mickey J. Addy) - "O Holy NightO Holy Night"O Holy Night" is a well-known Christmas carol composed by Adolphe Adam in 1847 to the French poem "Minuit, chrétiens" by Placide Cappeau , a wine merchant and poet, who had been asked by a parish priest to write a Christmas poem...
" (Words and Music by Adolphe Charles Adam)
Side 2
- "Caroling, Caroling" (Words and Music by Wihla Hutson and Alfred BurtAlfred BurtAlfred Shaddick Burt was an American jazz musician who is best known for composing the music for fifteen Christmas carols between 1942 and 1954. Only one of the carols was performed in public outside his immediate family circle during his lifetime.-Early life:Burt was born in Marquette, Michigan...
) - "The First Noël" (Traditional Christmas Music)
- "Hark! The Herald Angels SingHark! The Herald Angels Sing“Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” is a Christmas carol that first appeared in 1739 in the collection Hymns and Sacred Poems, having been written by Charles Wesley. This is not the version widely known today. A sombre man, Wesley had requested and received slow and solemn music for his lyrics, not the...
" (Music by Felix MendelssohnFelix MendelssohnJakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Barthóldy , use the form 'Mendelssohn' and not 'Mendelssohn Bartholdy'. The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians gives ' Felix Mendelssohn' as the entry, with 'Mendelssohn' used in the body text...
and lyrics by Charles WesleyCharles WesleyCharles Wesley was an English leader of the Methodist movement, son of Anglican clergyman and poet Samuel Wesley, the younger brother of Anglican clergyman John Wesley and Anglican clergyman Samuel Wesley , and father of musician Samuel Wesley, and grandfather of musician Samuel Sebastian Wesley...
) - "Silent Night" (Music by Joseph Mohr and lyrics by Franz Gruber)
- "Silver Bells" (Music and Lyrics by Jay LivingstonJay LivingstonJay Livingston was an American composer and singer best known as half of a songwriting duo with Ray Evans that specialized in songs composed for films. Livingston wrote the music and Evans the lyrics....
and Ray EvansRay EvansRaymond Bernard Evans was an American songwriter. He was a partner in a composing and songwriting duo with Jay Livingston, known for the songs they composed for films...
) - "Toyland" (Words and Music by Victor HerbertVictor HerbertVictor August Herbert was an Irish-born, German-raised American composer, cellist and conductor. Although Herbert enjoyed important careers as a cello soloist and conductor, he is best known for composing many successful operettas that premiered on Broadway from the 1890s to World War I...
) - "Have Yourself a Merry Little ChristmasHave Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" is a song introduced by Judy Garland in the 1944 MGM musical Meet Me in St. Louis. Frank Sinatra later recorded a version with modified lyrics, which has become more common than the original. The song was written by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane...
" (Words and Music by Hugh MartinHugh MartinHugh Martin was an American musical theater and film composer, arranger, vocal coach, and playwright. He is best known for his score for the 1944 MGM musical Meet Me In St...
and Ralph BlaneRalph BlaneRalph Blane was an American composer, lyricist, and performer.-Life and career:Born Ralph Uriah Hunsecker in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, Blane was the son of grocery store owners. He attended Tulsa Central High School...
) - "Ave MariaEllens dritter GesangEllens dritter Gesang , in English: "Ellen's Third Song", was composed by Franz Schubert in 1825 as part of his Opus 52, a setting of seven songs from Walter Scott's popular epic poem The Lady of the Lake, loosely translated into German.It has become one of Schubert's most popular works under the...
" (Original Music by Franz SchubertFranz SchubertFranz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
)
Como also recorded a rendition of the Wihla Hutson-Alfred Burt composition "Some Children See Him" during the sessions, but this was omitted from the finished album, presumably due to space limitations. The track remained unreleased until its inclusion on a 1999 CD
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
compilation of Como Christmas recordings.