Song of the Day: By Myself

The song of the day for Thursday, May 8, 2014 is “By Myself.”

About This Song

“By Myself” was written in 1937 by Arthur Schwartz (music) and Howard Dietz (lyrics) for the film Between The Devil, where it was sung by Jack Buchanan. Notable recordings include those by Fred Astaire, Helen Merrill, Judy Garland and Mabel Mercer.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this song first for his 1959 concept album, Hometown, My Town. It was arranged by Ralph Burns and sound as fresh and new as can be. Once again, I’m putting a plug for this album: though it contains only six numbers, each one of them is very fine and several are quite extraordinary, including “Penthouse Serenade” and “The Party’s Over.” What I find so wonderful about Hometown, My Town is that, for this listener anyway, is the album where Tony Bennett is the master of every note of music. In this choice of material, he’s found a relationship to the songs that sticks with me for hours and sometimes days after I listen. It’s available from iTunes for $4.99 and is worth every penny,

http://open.spotify.com/track/6KrDOez1KyBh5Xet2YELIP
“By Myself,” as well as the album Hometown, My Town, is available from iTunes.