The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: The Best Is Yet To Come

The song of the day for Sunday, June 14, 2015 is “The Best Is Yet To Come.”

About This Song

Written in 1959 by Cy Coleman and Carolyn Leigh, some say that “The Best is Yet to Come” was written for Tony Bennett. In any case, the song is strongly identified with him and he sings it at many of his concerts. Other recordings include those by Peggy Lee, Frank Sinatra, and Ella Fitzgerald.

About This Version

This is the first version of this song that Tony Bennett recorded and is, as far as I’m concerned, just perfect. It was arranged and conducted by the composer.

About Today

Cy Coleman (nee Seymour Kaufman) was born on June 14, 1929 in New York City. He was a child prodigy on the piano and had performed at Steinway Hall, Town Hall and Carnegie Hall between the ages of six and nine. In spite of his classical background, he was drawn to jazz and formed the Cy Coleman Trio. As a composer, he worked with several lyricists, most famously with Carolyn Leigh. In addition to writing wonderful popular songs, such as today’s song and my personal favorite, “The Rules Of The Road,” he also wrote the scores for Broadway musicals including Little Me, Sweet Charity, Wildcat, The City Of Angels and Barnum. Mr. Coleman died on November 18, 2004 at the age of 75.

Once again, I want to strongly recommend the new biography of Cy Coleman: You Fascinate Me So by Andy Propst.

The Best Is Yet To Come

Listen to The Best Is Yet To Come on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 2011


“The Best Is Yet To Come,” as well as all of the songs collected on The Columbia Singles, Vol. 6, is available from iTunes.

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Unboxing The Complete Tony Bennett Bill Evans LP Box Set

I finally broke down and ordered the new Complete Tony Bennett Bill Evans Box Set on 180-gram vinyl. It was waiting for me when I got home from work on Friday and I took a few snapshots.

First is the lovely glossy cover on the box:

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When you open the box, the first thing you see is the beautiful 12-page liner notes with Will Friedwald’s excellent essay and some wonderful photographs. On the back of the liner notes is this great collage. I especially like the engineer’s sheets and the 8-track tape. I used to have an 8-track tape player in my first car, a blue VW Beetle.

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Then there is this nice print of Tony and Bill. I think I’ll be finding a frame for this.

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There are four LPs in the set. One for The Tony Bennett Bill Evans Album and another for Together Again. The remaining two LPs are outtakes and bonus tracks. Here’s one of the covers:

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On the back of each album are these great photographs from the sessions in contact sheets:

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Here’s a close-up of one the photographs I liked, complete with a suggestion for cropping the photo:

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And, finally, the back of the box:

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This set is real class act. Concord Records did an outstanding job of packaging this set.

Alas, I don’t have a turntable anymore, though I am seriously considering buying one now. But my brother is an audiophile with a state-of-the-art system, so I’m sure I’ll be heading over to his house soon for a listen.

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Song of the Day: Thou Swell

The song of the day for Saturday, May 2, 2015 is “Thou Swell.”

About This Song

“Thou Swell” was written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart for the 1927 musical A Connecticut Yankee, based on the Mark Twain novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court. “Thou Swell” is one of more charming songs from the musical, as the lyrics feature a combination of modern and medieval language: “thine eyes are cute too” and “I’d feel so rich in a hut for two.”

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Thou Swell” in 1973 for Tony Bennett Sings More Rodgers and Hart, released in 1977. It was the second of two albums of Rodgers and Hart standards that Tony Bennett released on his own label, Improv. He was backed by the Ruby Braff-George Barnes Quartet, with Braff on cornet, Barnes on guitar, Wayne Wright on guitar and John Guiffrida on bass. No drums, no piano. The arrangements and the sound are astoundingly good. I absolutely adore both of these albums of Rodgers and Hart songs.

About Today

The lyricist of today’s song, Lorenz Hart, was born 120 years ago today on May 2, 1895 in New York. He met Richard Rodgers when they were both college students at Columbia University, where they wrote songs for various college productions. They continued working together up until Hart’s death in 1943. Together they wrote many of the greatest songs in the American Songbook: “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered,” “Falling In Love With Love” and many, many more. He stands today as one of the great American lyricists and his lyrics sound more contemporary today than ever.

Thou Swell

Listen to Thou Swell on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 2004


“Thou Swell,” as well as The Complete Improv Recordings, is available from iTunes.

Since it’s YouTube Saturday here at The Year of Tony Bennett, we leave you a video from Tony and his new touring partner, Lady Gaga … “The Lady Is A Tramp.”

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Song of the Day: Trav’lin’ Light

The song of the day for Thursday, April 30, 2015 is “Trav’lin’ Light.”

About This Song

Today’s song, “Trav’lin’ Light,” was written by two musicians: Trummy Young and Jimmy Mundy. Young was a trombonist who played with many of the great swing bands, including Earl Hines, Jimmie Lunceford and Benny Goodman. He also played with Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie in the mid-1940s and then joined the Louis Armstrong All-Stars in 1952, where he stayed until 1964. Jimmy Mundy played tenor saxophone in the same era and was also a noted arranger. Together, they wrote the melody for “Trav’lin’ Light” in 1942 with lyrics from Johnny Mercer. Billie Holiday made the first recording of this song, but it has been relatively widely recorded, by artists including Chet Baker, Carmen McRae, Queen Latifah, Ella Fitzgerald and Anita O’Day.

About This Version

I have to start out by saying that I absolutely adore this song. The first time I listened to Tony Bennett sing this song, I listened to it constantly for days. I may be one of the few people in the world who not only have a “Trav’lin’ Light” playlist on their iPod, but listen to it regularly. Tony Bennett’s recording of this song is one of the most beautiful songs he’s ever recorded. I hope you like it too.

Trav"lin" Light

Tony Bennett · Tony Bennett On Holiday: A Tribute To Billie Holiday · Song · 1997


“Trav’lin’ Light,” as well as Tony Bennett On Holiday, is available from iTunes.

About Billie Holiday’s Version

Billie Holiday recorded “” several times, beginning with the first recording of the song June 12, 1942 with the Paul Whitman Orchestra. I’m not always a huge fan on Whitman, but this recording is astounding. It was released as single and also as a V-disc. Mundy did the arrangement and Trummy Young played trombone on this recording. Lester Young also played on this recording.

Trav"lin" Light

Listen to Trav"lin" Light on Spotify. Song · Paul Whiteman & His Orchestra, Billie Holiday · 1988


“Trav’lin’ Light,” as well as Billie’s Blues, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Falling In Love With Love

The song of the day for Saturday, February 28, 2015 is “Falling In Love With Love.”

About This Song

Today’s song, “Falling In Love With Love,” is one of the many hit songs from the 1938 musical The Boys of Syracuse by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart. The musical is based on Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors, as adapted by George Abbot. It’s one of their most charming scores.

About This Version

“Falling In Love With Love” was not released on the original album of If I Ruled The World, but was added for the re-release of the album on CD in 1997. It’s really a wonderful arrangement. In the context of the song in the production, the song is sung by women who are working at their spinning wheels; the lovely opening verse (thanks, as always, for singing the verse, Mr. Bennett), you can not only hear but almost see those spinning wheels

This is our last song from the February album of the month: If I Ruled The World: Songs For The Jet Set. The album for March will be announced tomorrow and I hope you will love it as much as I do.

Falling In Love With Love

Tony Bennett · If I Ruled The World: Songs For The Jet Set · Song · 1965

“Falling In Love With Love,” as well as If I Ruled The World: Songs for the Jet Set, is available from iTunes.

About Today

It’s YouTube Saturday. Today we feature Tony singing another of the great songs from The Boys From Syracuse: “This Can’t Be Love.”

And, while we’re at it, here’s one of my favorite songs from the same show: “Sing For Your Supper,” with Rebecca Luker, Debbie Shapiro Gravitte and Christine Ebersole.

And, if you’re like me and can’t get enough of this fabulous score, here’s the cast recording from the 1997 Broadway revival, courtesy of our friends as Spotify.

Boys From Syracuse, The - Music & Lyrics By Rodgers & Hart

Listen to Boys From Syracuse, The - Music & Lyrics By Rodgers & Hart on Spotify · compilation · Soundtrack/Cast Album · 1997 · 20 songs