The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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The Word of the Day: Pre-order

This fall has two (and hopefully three) major releases for Tony Bennett fans. And two can be pre-ordered right now.

Viva Duets: Available on October 23, 2012

The Year of Tony Bennett has been writing extensively about this upcoming album. Go to Music on the menu and select Viva Duets to read about the artists on the album.

Viva Duets can be pre-ordered from Amazon.

Life Is a Gift: The Zen of Bennett: Available on November 20, 2012

This book sounds wonderful. On the Facebook page for the book:

… the iconic, award-winning vocalist offers a rich and varied collection of stories that capture hilarious, heartwarming, and moving moments from his remarkable sixty-year career.

The book is available for pre-order from Amazon and Barnes and Noble, as well as other retailers in both print and e-book formats.

Collectors and fans might also be interested in this offering from Premiere Collectibles: an autographed copy of the book.

The Zen of Bennett ???

As you may know, the documentary film The Zen of Bennett premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival this spring. It has also been screened at the Sydney Film Festival, the Tuscan Sun Festival, Michael Moore’s Traverse City Film Festival and the Hamptons International Film Festival. The film is expected to be announced in DVD via Netflix. No dates are available. All fingers at the Year of Tony Bennett are crossed for a fall release as well.

In the meantime, the trailer for the film is really wonderful and is available on the film’s website at www.zenofbennett.com.

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Tony Bennett and Bill Evans on the Tonight Show

Tony Bennett was a frequent performer on the Tonight Show: he was on the first and last episodes of the program with Johnny Carson, and was a frequent guest in between.

In October 1975, after the release of The Tony Bennett / Bill Evans Album, Bennett and Evans appeared and sang When in Rome. This clip from American Masters: The Music Never Ends shows much of their performance and some of the interview with Carson. It also features commentary from Clint Eastwood, Stephen Holden, Martin Scorsese, Jonathan Schwartz, and Bill Charlap.

The Year of Tony Bennett strongly recommends the The Music Never Ends. It’s available for streaming on Netflix and may be purchased as well. Amazon.com offers a two-DVD set, which also  includes the film of Tony Bennett’s performance at the Monterey Jazz Festival in 2005 in addition to the documentary.

Ladies and gentlemen: Tony Bennett and Bill Evans.

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My Funny Valentine

My Funny Valentine, by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, is a jazz classic and one of my favorite songs. This video, from the official Tony Bennett Vevo channel on YouTube, was recording live in 1979 at a concert at Jubilee Hall in Edmonton, Canada. With Ralph Sharon on piano. I don’t know who the bass player is, but he’s quite good (even though he doesn’t look a day over fourteen years old).

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Speak Low

Speak Low (music by Kurt Weill; lyrics by Ogden Nash) is one several Kurt Weill songs that Tony performs. This is one of our favorites at The Year of Tony Bennett.
Tony Bennett and Norah Jones, from Duets II.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRm08pVt-xc?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

Love is pure gold; and time a thief!