1960–1971: Continued success with Columbia and height of career
In 1962 after a three-year break from studio albums, Vale would release an Italian-themed album titled I Have But One Heart, where he showcased his love for Italian music. The album proved to be successful and his next project, Arrivederci, Roma was released the next year. It also contained Italian standards, such as "Ciao, Ciao, Bambina", "Arrivederci, Roma", and "Volare". The album proved to be his most successful yet, reaching No. 34 on the Billboard and Cashbox album charts.
His version of "The Star-Spangled Banner", recorded in late 1963, was a fixture at many sporting events for years, and the gold record Vale received was displayed at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. Vale frequently sang the song at Yankee Stadium. Additionally, he owned the Florida minor-league team Daytona Beach Admirals.
His biggest hit would come in 1964, with the song "Have You Looked into Your Heart", which would top the Easy Listening chart. The single became his final top-forty pop hit as well, peaking at No. 24 on the Billboard Hot 100. His other singles would perform well on the easy listening charts too, with singles like "Time Alone Will Tell" and "Dommage, Dommage" reaching No. 6 and No. 5 on the chart respectively. The latter single would be his last appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at No. 93 in late 1966. His final top-ten Easy Listening single would be "Don't Tell My Heart to Stop Loving You" which reached No. 6 on the charts in early 1968. Vale would continue recording singles up until 1978, placing 27 songs on the US Easy Listening chart and 9 on the Canadian Adult Contemporary chart.
Vale appeared often on television programs like The Ed Sullivan Show and Johnny Carson's Tonight Show. He performed at venues such as the Copacabana nightclub and Carnegie Hall, both located in New York City. In the latter he would record his first and only live album, Standing Ovation at Carnegie Hall (May 1964), which received a positive critical and commercial reception. Vale would consistently place albums on the Billboard 200 (then known as the Billboard Top LPs). The biggest successes came in the early 1960s with The Language of Love and Be My Love, but his later albums like Till reached high positions as well.
Jerry Vale worked in Las Vegas for the first time at the Sands Hotel, for a two-week gig. However, when Jack Entratter (the owner) personally heard Vale, he would say "Tell Vale that he can stay here as long as he likes. I like him!" That extended engagement lasted a way longer twenty-two weeks. During that time Vale would work alongside one of his early idols, Frank Sinatra, who set up a spot for Vale at the Sands Hotel in the first place. The two would become and remain close friends up until Sinatra's death in 1998. Barbara Sinatra noted in a statement, "Jerry Vale was a long, long-time friend of my husband. I loved him and his wife (Rita). She is one of my best friends." Whilst working at the Sands Hotel Vale befriended a number of popular entertainers, such as Jerry Lewis, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Nat King Cole, who would die just a few years later.
In January 1969, Vale re-signed a new contract with his longtime label Columbia, which would last an additional six years. By that point, Vale had been with the label for seventeen years and recorded twenty-four albums for it. He also had his own syndicated TV special to aired in the spring of that year called "A Very Special Occasion", which also spotlighted singer Joanie Sommers and television host Ed Sullivan. Vale would be on the latter's show five times that year as well, performing album cuts.
