Song of the Day: The Rules of the Road

The Song of the Day for Saturday, November 10, 2012 is The Rules of the Road.

About The Rules of the Road

This song is by Cy Coleman and Carolyn Leigh. It’s been sung by many jazz artists, including Anita O’Day, Lena Horne and Shirley Horn, among others.

About This Version

This version is a previously unreleased version recorded in 1964 with the Ralph Sharon Trio, compiled on The Essential Tony Bennett double-CD set.

I’ve often thought that Cy Coleman was a perfect composer for Tony Bennett. In addition to composing many of Broadway’s finest shows (Sweet Charity, Little Me, City of Angels, and Barnum — to name a few), he was also a jazz pianist and performer in his own right.  Every song of Coleman’s that Tony Bennett has ever recorded has been quite good, due in part to Coleman’s jazz background while being a composer of popular and Broadway music.

I fell in love with Sweet Charity when I was in junior high school and played it constantly on my RCA stereo set in my room. I often wondered if either of my parents realized what I was listening to.