Search - Perry Como :: Greatest Gospel Songs

Songs of All Faiths & Inspiration not "Gospel Songs"

John MacKay | 09/28/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"When this BMG compilation album was first released in 2000 it wasn't done with the help of Como historian and expert George Townsend . . . unfortunately! At the time of release there was a fair amount of controversy concerning the title because, for the majority of Perry's long-time admirers, he has never been associated with "Gospel" music per se. Mahalia Jackson sang "Gospel" not Como. What Como does sing, and beautifully so, are the traditional "Songs of All Faiths" as exemplified by his early '50s album titled "I Believe" and actually sub-titled "Perry Como Sings Songs of All Faiths" released originally in 1953 and then again within an expanded LP in 1956. And, incredible as it may seem, Perry's original versions of "Ave Maria" and "The Lord's Prayer", recorded 'live' at the Church of Incarnation, New York City, September 30th, 1949, fifty-three years ago this month, produced by Charles Grean and assisted by Ray Charles ( of the Ray Charles Singers ), actually charted at Nos. 22 and 28 respectively! Como has been associated with these two hymns ever since, recording the two of them again in 1959 with the Male Voices of the Robert Shaw Chorale. And to demonstrate that he really could sing "songs of all faiths", Perry also recorded two Hebrew / Yiddish traditional songs which were included within the 1953 and 1956 compilations. The majority of these traditional hymns were recorded only in monaural excepting the 1959 versions of "Ave Maria" and "The Lord's Prayer" which were brilliantly recorded in full stereophonic sound but all too often re-released in either monaural or "electronically reprocessed" fake stereo! In 1958 Como recorded what would become one of the most beautiful albums of his long career, an album of inspirational songs ( not "gospel" ) titled "When You Come to the End of the Day" and an album which Como historian Townsend claims is a "MUST" in real stereo to be fully appreciated. Como was at the height of his career in 1958, just as the stereophonic high-fidelity era was beginning, and the maturity and smooth assurance of his delivery is very apparent within twelve beautiful performances supported by Mitchell Ayres' Orchestra and the masterfully conducted Ray Charles Singers some songs a capella. According to Townsend, these songs really do not mix well with the earlier hymns for reasons which are primarily technical. They should be appreciated within the context of their time and place with careful attention to both their artistic and technical integrity. This particular compilation inappropriately labeled "Greatest Gospel Songs" fails to respect these issues, representing a "grab-bag" approach rather than a well thought out artistic and technical sequencing of songs. Early versions of this CD also contained a number of errors which should now have been corrected: several of the original stereo tracks, including "The Lord's Prayer", were in monaural instead of real stereo; half of the hymn "Holy God We Praise Thy Name" was inadvertently missing ( it should include the St. Patrick's Cathedral Boy's Choir ); plus a number of technical glitches resulting from the use of poor masters. The version of "Ave Maria" used within this compilation was taken from Perry's 1968 "Christmas Album" ( with Nick Perito conducting ) whilst it should have been the 1959 Robert Shaw Chorale stereo track as a proper match, artistically and technically, with "The Lord's Prayer". These errors should be corrected within newer versions for which the label has apparently offered a free replacement to those who request it. That's the responsible thing to have done and exactly what you expect from a credible label such as Bertelsmann's BMG company. The corrected version is still a mixed bag but deserves a five-star rating for BMG's responsible handling of this issue! Hopefully, with Townsend's help, this sort of thing will never happen again!"

Another winner from House of Hits

Mr. M. Dunnington | West Midlands, United Kingdom United Kingdom | 10/05/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Long awaited release of Como's religious material. Paul Williams company "House of Hits" always produce a quality sound from original masters. Once again he brings a freshness to tracks that have long been favourites. Most of these tracks have only appeared on scratchy vinyl or poor quality CD's. Here is true stereo or perfect mono. Thank you Mr. williams, keep 'em coming."

Gospel Songs - 2 Versions Available?

John MacKay | 04/30/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There appear to be two different versions of this CD currently available which are causing confusion with reviewers. The first production run of this CD contained a number of errors the most serious of which was an abridged version of Perry's "Holy God We Praise Thy Name" where the hymn was cut off just prior to the St. Patrick's Cathedral Boy's Choir. The time given within the credits was correct but the actual track time was not. Other errors included monaural versions of stereo originals such as Perry's 1959 "The Lord's Prayer" and songs from his stereophonic album "When You Come to the End of the Day" released in 1958. Some reviewers claim that they have purchased copies within which these errors have since been corrected. If you have purchased the faulty version of this CD compilation it should be returned for exchange."