Rags to Riches (song)
"Rags to Riches" is a 1953 popular song by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. Background. It is based on a famous Russian tune called "Volga Melody" by Yuri Shchetkov sometimes known as "Samara My Lovely Town." The bridge passage or middle 8 was inserted by the composer. Tony Bennett recording. The best-known version of the song, recorded by Tony Bennett with Percy Faith and his orchestra, was number one for eight weeks on the "Billboard chart in 1953 and became a gold record.