Sergio Franchi was an Italian American Opera and Pop singer who was very successful during the 1960s and 1970s.  He was born in Italy in 1926.  He started singing at the age of 10 and during his teens, he either had his own group or sang in vocal groups playing in local clubs.  Through his father’s friendship with a South African businessman, the Galli family moved to South Africa, when Sergio was 21 and after he had served his military service.

While in Johannesburg, South Africa, an Opera director saw him perform and put him in his first opera.  Sergio Franchi continued singing operettas and his voice continued to get better.  After getting married and having children, Sergio temporarily moved back to Italy.

He was cast in a small London production, and through TV appearances, his fame was starting to rise.  Norman Luboff saw him on TV and had RCA Victor get in touch with him.  RCA Victor signed him to a seven-year contract in 1962.

RCA promoted Sergio Franchi heavily and his career in America took off.  Soon he was an opening act in Las Vegas and toured the world singing Italian Classics and Pop standards.  He applied for and received his American citizenship in 1972.

Sergio Franchi released many albums throughout the 1960s and the 1970s and they sold very well but he never had huge successes on the music charts.  He was an Opera singer who also sang Pop tunes, but he never achieved the success of his peers.  He had one of the strongest tenor voices around, but I think his reputation in the Light Classics kept him from having hit albums.

The Heart Of Christmas is Sergio Franchi’s only Christmas album, released in 1965.  This reissue comes to us from BMG Music who handles reissues of albums from RCA Victor.  The original album had 12 songs, and this reissue contains all 12 songs and all in the original order.  Bonus.

The cover of the CD is a copy of the cover of the album except the image on the CD is blown up a little bit and doesn’t contain the parts from the original album along the edges.  The title and artist name are exactly the same but in a different position, but the same fonts are used.  The original album had all the songs listed on the cover, but the CD has some, but not all, tracks listed.

The back of the CD is split in half longitudinally with a picture of Sergio Franchi on the left and a numerical track listing with time signatures on the right.  Above the track listing is the name of the CD and Sergio’s name.

The CD cover opens along a single fold-out and here we find most of the artwork from the back of the original album.  It is not an exact duplication of the back of the album, but the original artwork is here, and the original endorsement is here as well.  On the right side of the opened cover is a numerical track listing with time signatures.  Below the song titles are writer credits.

The back of the CD cover has an image of Sergio Franchi’s first album from RCA Victor.  An odd choice except for pure nostalgia.

All the songs on this reissue are Christmas carols and hymns except for two that are original Christmas songs and were written for this album.  No Frosty The Snowman, Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer or Jingle Bells.  Sergio Franchi, being a trained Operatic tenor would be out of place singing the more novelty songs of Christmas.

Also, there are a few that are sung in Italian and Latin.

The first song is probably Sergio Franchi’s most popular Christmas song, Buon Natale (Christmastime in Rome).  This is a Christmas song that was written for this album.  If you are familiar with the song title, it is probably the Nat King Cole song with the same title, but this is a different song altogether.

In this song, Sergio Franchi describes the hustle and bustle of the local citizens of Rome hurrying to get all their holiday chores done.  It is accompanied by a wonderful chorus that unfortunately goes uncredited.

The second song is the title track of this CD, The Heart Of Christmas (Cuor’ Di Natale), the other original song to this album.  Sergio begins the song in Italian, and starting with the second verse, alternates between English and Italian.  In the song, Sergio Franchi describes how his love for a girl is just like the heart of Christmas.  He describes all her endearing qualities and how it equates to the glory of Christmas.

The 4^th song is the first of three that are sung in Italian.  Panis Angelicus is an old Latin carol and is not unfamiliar to me.  I have 6 others in addition to this one.  Sergio Franchi’s voice is best while singing in Italian or Latin.  The vocal chorus opens the song with reverent harmonies.  Sergio begins singing and you can immediately feel the passion in his voice.

Oh Little Town Of Bethlehem and Away In A Manger follow the same formula.  The choir begins with reverent harmonies and Sergio Franchi begins after the first four bars.  Marty Gold & his Orchestra do a magnificent job on all songs, but the chorus is what I hear most.

The 7^th song is another Christmas selection sung in Italian.  It’s a medley of Italian carols; Tu Scendi Dalle Stelle & O Bambino (One Cold And Blessed Winter).  Sergio Franchi & the choir both sing the first song in Italian and O Bambino (One Cold And Blessed Winter) is sung in English.

The best song on here is Ave Maria (Bach – Gounod).  Sergio Franchi’s voice is in fine form and the song is in Latin, so his voice is perfectly suited for this. 

The 11^th song, O Come, All Ye Faithful (Adeste Fideles), features the choir carrying the first half of the song all by themselves and after one minute, 2 seconds, Sergio comes in to sing the second verse in Latin, and the third verse in English.  This is a close second to the best song on the CD.

Of course, I could be wrong.  The last song on this wonderful Christmas CD is The Lord’s Prayer.  I grew up Catholic and have said the prayer many times and was shocked when I first heard the song years ago.  I couldn’t believe that someone had turned it into a wonderful song.  Not exactly a Christmas song, but it does show up on a lot of Christmas CDs.  It is obviously one of my favorite songs, but I have heard it sung better by others.  Sergio Franchi starts off terrific and the choir is there providing the right balance, but as the song progresses, so does Sergio’s voice.  By the end of the song, he is shouting at the rooftops, and it can be just too much.  In contrast, the song finishes nicely.

This is a terrific Christmas CD.  I like it.  Sergio Franchi does a wonderful job.  It’s great at Christmas.  I don’t know if I could listen to Sergio Franchi every day, but during the holidays when emotions are running high, Sergio Franchi delivers powerful songs, and the choir is vocally present on every song.  There are so many great songs on here, I was having trouble narrowing it down to three or four.  Buon Natale (Christmastime In Rome), It Came Upon A Midnight Clear, Away In A Manger, Ave Maria (Bach – Gounod) and O Come, All Ye Faithful (Adeste Fideles) are all standout songs.

This CD has a flavor of 1965 Christmases.  Italian American singers were all the rage, Sergio Franchi, Jimmy Roselli, Al Martino, Dean Martin, etc. In 1965 it made perfect sense, and a perfect Christmas album, to have popular Italian American singers record Christmas albums.  (I have many, look for reviews of those in this blog’s future).  Sergio Franchi’s Christmas album is one of the better ones from that era.

I give this CD :

****