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Song of the Day: Lost In The Stars
The song of the day for Friday, September 11, 2015 is “Lost In The Stars.”
About This Song
“Lost in the Stars” was composed in 1949 by Kurt Weill with lyrics by Maxwell Anderson. The song is from the 1949 musical of the same name, based on the 1948 novel by Alan Paton, Cry, the Beloved Country. Set in South Africa in an era when apartheid seemed as if it would never end, the plot concerns a black priest whose son, in a robbery attempt, kills a white man who is a friend of his father. The priest sings this song at the end of the first act, in a complete crisis of faith.
About This Version
Tony Bennett has recorded this song many times and all of the versions are wonderful. Today’s version is his first recording of “Lost In the Stars” and was recorded on June 6, 1956. This song was conducted by Ray Conniff. The arrangement is, I believe, from the uncredited Marion Evans. Other songs on the album were arranged by Neal Hefti, Gil Evans and Don Costa. “Lost In The Stars” was released in January 1957 on Bennett’s second full-length album, Tony.
“Lost In The Stars,” as well as Tony, is available from iTunes.
Song of the Day: It’s Too Soon To Know
The song of the day for Thursday, September 10, 2015 is “It’s Too Soon To Know.”
About This Song
“It’s Too Soon To Know” was a hit R&B song for The Orioles. It was written in 1948 by Deborah Chiseler. Deborah Chessler (a pen name for Shirley Reingold) was born in Baltimore, Maryland . Chessler not only wrote music, but managed The Orioles as well. In her obituary in the New York Daily News (she died in 2012) Richard Hinckley wrote that:
Her story was extraordinary in part because she was a young Jewish woman managing a black vocal group in an age when the entertainment industry, particularly in a Southern state like Maryland, was rigidly segregated.
She and her mother toured with the group everywhere, including the South, dealing with booking agents, theater owners and other showbiz officials who were not used to taking women seriously or treating black performers equally.
About This Version
Tony Bennett recorded “It’s Too Soon To Know” on January 4, 1955. It was released that year as a single with another song by a female composer: “Close Your Eyes” by Bernice Petkere. Both were arranged and conducted by Percy Faith.
“It’s Too Soon To Know,” as well as all of the songs collected on The Columbia Singles, Vol. 3, is available from iTunes.
Song of the Day: Poor Little Rich Girl
The song of the day for Friday, August 21. 2015 is “Poor Little Rich Girl.”
About This Song
Noël Coward wrote “Poor Little Rich Girl” for the 1925 revue On With the Dance. It is one of his most popular songs.
About This Version
Tony Bennett recorded “Poor Little Rich Girl” with Count Basie and His Orchestra in 1959 for their first album: Basie/Bennett. The very effective arrangement is by Ralph Sharon.
About Today
Today we celebrate the birth of one of America’s great band leaders: William James Basie, who was born in Red Bank, New Jersey on August 21, 1904. He started playing piano in his youth; by the time he was a teenager, he had dropped out of school and starting his career as a jazz pianist.
He made the decision to move west to Kansas City, where he joined Bennie Moten’s band in 1929. After Moten’s death in 1936, Basie formed his own band and took it to Chicago. In that time, he worked with some of the great jazz musicians: Lester Young, Freddie Green, Buck Clayton, Jimmy Rushing and Joe Williams.
In 1937, he took his band to New York, playing in venues like the Roseland Ballroom and The Savoy. During this time, he played with Billie Holiday and other noted artists of the day.
Like most big bands after the war, Basie had to disband his large group, but continued to play in smaller combos and moved on to the new forms, like bebop, with a new group of musicians: Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis, among others. He gradually reformed his band, toured Europe and kept his band alive and vibrant all the way into the 1980s, including a wonderful appearance in Mel Brook’s film Blazing Saddles.
We note here that Tony Bennett’s drummer, Harold Jones, played with Count Basie from 1967 to 1972. Tony Bennett always introduces Jones as “Count Basie’s Favorite Drummer.” We have a little video of Harold Jones playing with Count Basie and His Orchestra that seems to prove that point:
Happy Birthday, Count Basie. Thanks for all the great music.
“Poor Little Rich Girl,” as well as Basie/Bennett, is available from iTunes.
July 2015 Tour Appearances with Lady Gaga
July 4 : Salle des Etoiles, Sporting Monte-Carlo : Monte Carlo, Monaco
Ticket and Venue Information
July 6 : Montreux Jazz Festival : Montreuz, Switzerland
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July 8 : Copenhagen Jazz Festival : Copenhagen, Denmark
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July 10 : North Sea Jazz Festival : Rotterdam, Netherlands
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July 12 : Gent Jazz Festiva : Gent, Belgium
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July 15 : Umbria Jazz : Perugia, Italy
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July 17 : Cap Roig Festival : Girona, Spain
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July 24 : Borgata Casino and Spa : Atlantic City, New Jersey
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July 25 : Bethel Woods Center For The Arts : Bethel, New York
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July 29 : Chastain Park Amphitheater : Atlanta, Georgia
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July 31, August 1 : Kennedy Center : Washington, DC
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