The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

By Leave a Comment

Penthouse Serenade

As Mr. Bennett returns home after his two month tour of Europe, our Song of the Day is Penthouse Serenade.

About Penthouse Serenade

The song was written in 1931 by Will Jason and Val Burton. The song quickly became a jazz standard and has been recorded many times — 216 different recordings according to AllMusic.com. In addition to Mr. Bennett’s recording, it has been recorded by Ruth Etting (1932), Bob Hope (1937), Nat King Cole (1952), Errol Garner (1949), and Marianne Faithful (1990), among many others.

About This Version

Tony first recorded this song for Hometown, My Town, his second major jazz album (after Cloud 7), released in 1959. With arrangements by Ralph Burns, I believe it stands as one of Tony Bennett’s finest albums (and it is a personal favorite of The Year of Tony Bennett).  This album, featuring extended orchestrations of just six songs, summons of the essence of New York. Welcome home, Mr. Bennett.

By Leave a Comment

Rags To Riches

I keep seeing Martin Scorsese doing his Siri – iPhone commercial on TV, which made me think of Goodfellas, which leads to me the Song of the Day for August 10, 2012: Rags to Riches. The song was written in 1953 by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross and was recorded by Tony Bennett in that same year.

Tony wrote about the song in the liner notes for Forty Years: The Artistry of Tony Bennett:
“This was one record on which I was way off, because I was way against doing it. Mitch Miller and Percy Faith practically had to tie me down to do it. I was wrong: in two weeks, it sold a half-million records in Pittsburgh alone, and it stayed 25 weeks on the charts, including eight as #1. As Confucius once said, ‘You must learn not only to give advice, but also to take it.'”

By Leave a Comment

In A Sentimental Mood

I’ve been in a Duke Ellington mood all day and so the Song of the Day for August 9, 2012 is In A Sentimental Mood, written by Edward Kennedy Ellington in 1935. Lyrics were written later Irving Mills and Manny Kurtz. It may be one his most-recorded songs; it certainly is one his most-loved songs. In fact, I can’t remember not ever knowing and loving this song.

This is from Tony’s 1999 album Bennett Sings Ellington: Hot and Cold. The personnel on this album is staggering. The Ralph Sharon Quartet (Ralph Sharon, Gray Sargent, Paul Langosch, and Clayton Cameron) are featured, as well as an orchestral charts arranged and conducted Jorge Calandrelli, the Argentinian composer, conductor, and arranger and big band charts arranged and conducted by Ralph Burns (though the big band wasn’t used on this particular song). The album is definitely worth careful listening.

By Leave a Comment

One

The Year of Tony Bennett mourns the passing of the composer Marvin Hamlisch on August 7, 2012 at the age of 68.

Mr. Hamlisch composed for both film and Broadway. In addition to the score for A Chorus Line, he composed many memorable songs for films, including The Way We Were for Barbra Streisand. In fact, in 1974, he won two Academy Awards: one for the score of The Sting and one for the song The Way We Were.

In honor of Mr. Hamlisch, the Song of the Day for August 8, 2012, is One, from A Chorus Line, recorded by Tony on the Improv label.

By Leave a Comment

Watch What Happens

The Song of the Day for August 7, 2012, is the lovely Watch What Happens written by Michel Legrand (music), with English lyrics by Norman Gimbel and French lyrics by Jacques Demy, from the 1964 film The Umbrellas of Cherbourgh. Tony first recorded this song in 1965 for If Ruled The World: Songs For the Jet Set.

Improv album cover for Tony Bennett The McPartlands and Friends Make Magnificent Music, recorded live 1977

Today, we feature a version from an Improv album: Tony Bennett/The McPartlands and Friends Make Wonderful Music, recorded live at the Statler Hilton in Buffalo, NY on May 13, 1977. The musicians on this album are the best. In addition to Tony’s usual trio of Torrie Zito (piano, musical direction), John Giuffrida (guitar), and Joe Cocuzzo (drums), this performance features Marian McPartland (piano), Jimmy McPartland (cornet, trumpet), George Reed (drums), Brian Torff (bass), Vic Dickenson (trombone), Herb Hall (clarinet), Spider Martin (saxophone), Buddy Tate (saxophone) and Charlie Byrd (guitar).

Have a listen … and watch what happens.