The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Antonia Bennett

It can’t be easy to be the child of a legend and to follow in his footsteps. But Antonia Bennett has done just that and stands as a very gifted artist and singer on her own. She often tours with her father and is currently touring with him this summer in Europe. The Year of Tony Bennett has had the pleasure of hearing her several times and look forward to hearing her open for her father at each concert. We especially enjoy hearing them sing a favorite Stephen Sondheim song from Merrily We Roll Along: Old Friends.

She is a serious student of music and studied at the famed Berklee College of Music in Boston. She’s a gifted performer and we look forward to hearing her for a long time to come.

We are currently listening to her EP album Natural, a collection of jazz standards, and are enjoying it very much. Natural was released by Mesa/Bluemoon Recordings and is available at Amazon and on iTunes.

For more information about Antonia Bennett, visit her website at www.antoniabennett.com.

Some interviews and recording links:

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Tony Bennett Interviews from the 1980s and 1990s

We thank Hulu and NBC for putting together this collection of interviews for viewing. Interviewers include Tom Snyder, Rona Elliot, Jonathan Schwartz, Gene Shalit, and Matt Lauer.

[hulu id=U48MaUgeEykVFTWFGUCTmA width=512 height=288]

Sorry for the commercials between sessions. Runs about 35 minutes, including the ads.

 

<a href=”http://www.hypersmash.com”>HyperSmash</a>

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Jon Stewart Interviews Tony Bennett on the Daily Show

I loved Jon Stewart’s interview with Tony Bennett on the Daily Show. Here it is, from September 29, 2011. Just click on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart link below to launch the video.

Sorry iPad and iPhone users: only available in Flash.

Here’s a video of Tony singing America The Beautiful at the Rally to Restore Sanity, which they discussed in the interview. I was watching it live on television and had no idea Tony Bennett was appearing. It was very moving to hear him that day:

Follow this link to view the performance.

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The European Tour – UK – 2012

July 3 – Palace Theatre – Manchester, England

Here’s a review from Manchester Evening News.

Live tweeting as the performance ends:

From the Manchester Evening News: Tony Bennett on why he has no plans to retire. Music to my ears!

June 30 & July 1 – Royal Albert Hall – London, England

The Guardian has a nice interview with Mr. Bennett in advance of his upcoming dates in the UK.

A review from The Upcoming.

Live tweeting after the performances:

June 27 – Empire Theatre – Liverpool, England

The Liverpool Echo has an interview with Mr. Bennett about the hall, Frank Sinatra, and Paul McCartney. Check back for reviews of this performance.

Another review from Click Liverpool.

Students in Liverpool are looking forward to the concert, according to LS Media, the Independent Liverpool Student Newspaper. Hope you have a great time.

Live tweeting as the concert ends:

Here’s a nice review from the Liverpool Echo.

June 25 – Royal Concert Hall  – Glasgow, Scotland

The Scottish Daily Record has an interview with Mr. Bennett about how much he enjoys performing in Scotland.

Here’s a review of the concert from The Scotsman.

June 24 – Birmingham Symphony Hall – Birmingham, England

The Guardian has a nice interview with Mr. Bennett in advance of his upcoming dates in the UK. Check back for reviews of this performance.

Here’s a review from Ian St. Peters. Thanks, Ian! And this review from the Birmingham Mail.

June 18 – The Tuscan Sun Festival – Florence, Italy

Tony Bennett is participating in the 24 Hour Plays event. On the evening of July 17, Mr. Bennett, accompanied by his pianist Lee Musiker, will sing four songs for the writers, actors, and directors participating in the project. Mr. Bennett will sing four songs for them–no one will know the songs ahead of time. The writers will draw the song that they’ll be writing a fifteen minute long play on. They’ll stay up all night to write the play and rehearse the performance. On the evening of July 18, they’ll perform them for the audience. Mr. Bennett will perform the four songs as well. As a former theater person, it sounds like a terrific event.

June 16 – Tribeca Firenze at the Tuscan Sun Festival – Florence, Italy

The Zen of Bennett premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York on April 23, 2012 and was also featured at the Sydney (Australia) Film Festival in June, 2012. The film has gotten excellent reviews and The Year of Tony Bennett looks forward to seeing the film when it goes into wider distribution. Also visit The Zen of Bennett website for more information about this documentary.

Tony tweeted about the screening:

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The Quartet

The Year of Tony Bennett has seen Tony Bennett several times in concert, always with this quartet of gifted musicians who not only back up Mr. Bennett superbly, but are all exceptional artists in their own right.

Tom Adair (piano).

Gray Sargent (guitar). Gray Sargent has, to the best of our knowledge, played with Mr. Bennett longer than other members of the current quartet. Gray was a member of the Ralph Sharon Quartet (along with Clayton Cameron and Paul Langosch) and has played with Ruby Braff. He is a recognized jazz and swing guitarist. Tony often sings with only Gray accompanying him at his concerts and those songs are always quite lovely. You can sometimes find Gray’s album, Shades of Gray, from Amazon.

Marshall Wood (bass). Marshall Wood is a well-respected jazz bass player. He played with Gray Sargent on Shades of Gray and with Rudy Braff.

Harold Jones (drums). Count Basie’s Favorite Drummer. He’s The Year of Tony Bennett‘s favorite drummer too. A native of Richmond, Indiana, he has played with many of the 20th and 21st century’s finest jazz artists: Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Hoagy Carmichael, Oscar Peterson, Benny Goodman, Joe Williams, Ella Fitzgerald and Natalie Cole. He is a renowned drumming instructor as well. We recently enjoyed the new biography of Mr. Jones: Harold Jones: The Singer’s Drummer by Gil Jacobs, which is available on Amazon.