Perry Como
Crooner / Pop
Perry Como’s relaxed, unshowy voice and reassuring television presence became a familiar part of home entertainment in the 1950s.
His television programmes showed that a pop singer could be more than a voice on records: he could become a trusted visitor, welcomed into people’s homes every week.
Where did the sound come from?
Pierino Como grew up in Pennsylvania in an Italian immigrant family and worked as a barber from an early age. An offer from the local music scene led him to Freddie Carlone’s orchestra and then to Ted Weems’s. When Weems’s band broke up, Como briefly considered leaving music. Radio appearances and recording opportunities instead gave him the beginnings of a solo career.
By the 1940s, Como was an RCA Victor recording artist and a radio star. His calm delivery, close to the microphone, suited the intimate listening habits of postwar households. Television in the 1950s introduced him as a presence as well as a voice: an easygoing guest whom viewers could count on seeing every week.
The years that changed the course
“If”, “Don’t Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes”, “No Other Love”, “Wanted”, “Hot Diggity” and “Catch a Falling Star” brought major hits across the decade. “Catch a Falling Star” also earned a distinctive place in recording history as the first record to receive an official RIAA gold certification.
The Perry Como Show brought together music, guests and relaxed conversation. Como’s natural manner before the camera showed that early television stardom could rest on warmth and intimacy as readily as on a noisy spectacle.
What made the sound instantly recognisable?
His baritone is smooth and carefully controlled. He conceals the breath and connects phrases with the natural flow of conversation. The impression of ease comes from mastering technique so thoroughly that the listener scarcely notices it.
Whether singing an orchestral ballad, a song with a light Latin rhythm or a cheerful novelty number, Como retains the same recognisable personality. That consistency lies at the heart of the trust he built with his audience.
The world behind the stage
Como’s success shows how the crooner tradition found a new domestic setting through television and the LP during the rock ’n’ roll era. His career also reminds us that the music of the 1950s cannot be reduced to a single story about youth.
Turning points
Como had already become a star in the 1940s after moving from Ted Weems’s orchestra to radio and RCA Victor. In the 1950s, television made him a regular guest in American homes. “If”, “Don’t Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes”, “No Other Love”, “Wanted”, “Hot Diggity” and “Catch a Falling Star” succeeded at different tempos, while his weekly programme combined music, visiting performers and easy conversation. As rock ’n’ roll gathered force, his calm approach offered family audiences a different kind of modern entertainment.
Inside the studio
Como’s smooth baritone carries little apparent strain, but its control is exact. He makes breathing unobtrusive and links the words as naturally as speech. This ease depends on using technique without displaying it. RCA’s orchestral productions and Mitchell Ayres’s arrangements kept the voice at the centre. On television, Como’s measured movements before the camera reflected a style of performance shaped by the microphone.
Who carried the influence forward?
Como is one of the major stars who remind us that the 1950s encompassed much more than teenage rebellion and rock ’n’ roll. For years he sustained a successful relationship between records, television and commercial sponsorship. The first RIAA gold certification, awarded to “Catch a Falling Star”, symbolises a new era of measurement and marketing in the recording business. His lasting example is the strength of a reassuring, intimate personality in mass entertainment.
A listening guide to the 1950s
This is a listening route, not a ranking of the best songs. These starting points trace the artist’s development across the decade, different sides of the music and its place in history.
If
A simple, direct romantic ballad.
Don’t Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes
A country-pop crossover success.
Wanted
A major pop hit carried by Como’s warm baritone.
Catch a Falling Star
One of the emblematic records of the new gold-record era.
The legacy in music history
He brought the crooner tradition into the television age with an inviting sense of warmth.
Perry Como’s musical identity took shape in the 1950s and continued to resonate in later decades through fresh interpretations of the repertoire, echoes of the stage approach and direct influence on other musicians. In this dossier, Oldies Radyo considers the artist as a creative force in the evolution of popular music, alongside the nostalgic appeal.
These articles were originally written in Turkish for Oldies Radyo through comparisons of international institutional sources and archives. This English edition preserves their scope and editorial approach.
Related 1950s artist features
