The song of the day for Sunday, February 17, 2019, is “Fly Me to the Moon.”

About This Song

“Fly Me To The Moon” was written in 1954 by Bart Howard. It was originally titled “In Other Words,” but the song was not doing that well, in spite of several recordings. In 1962, Howard renamed the song to “Fly Me To The Moon,” and the song began to catch on. Tony Bennett’s 1965 recording for If I Ruled The World was a big hit for Bennett. There have been many recordings of the song, including those by Frank Sinatra, Kaye Ballard and many more. However, Bart Howard told Bennett that his 1965 recording was “the definitive performance of this song.”

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Fly Me to the Moon” in 1965 for his album If I Ruled the World: Songs for the Jet Set (which is, I think, the first Tony Bennett that my parents bought for a new stereo). Don Costa did a lovely arrangement.

Fly Me To The Moon

Fly Me To The Moon, a song by Tony Bennett on Spotify

“Fly Me to the Moon,” as well as If I Ruled the World: Songs for the Jet Set, is available from iTunes.

The song of the day for Friday, June 1, 2018 is “Fly Me to the Moon.”

About This Song

“Fly Me To The Moon” was written in 1954 by Bart Howard. It was originally titled “In Other Words,” but the song was not doing that well, in spite of several recordings. In 1962, Howard renamed the song to “Fly Me To The Moon,” and the song began to catch on. Tony Bennett’s 1965 recording for If I Ruled The World: Songs for the Jet Set was a big hit for Bennett. There have been many recordings of the song, including those by Frank Sinatra, Kaye Ballard and many more. However, Bart Howard told Bennett that his 1965 recording was “the definitive performance of this song.”

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Fly Me to the Moon” in 1965 for the album If I Ruled the World: Songs for the Jet Set; it features an arrangement by Don Costa.

“Fly Me to the Moon,” as well as If I Ruled the World: Songs for the Jet Set, is available from iTunes.

About Today

Today we honor composer Bart Howard, born on June 1, 1915 in Burlington, Iowa. He started his career as a accompanist and played for many notable artists in his career, including Mabel Mercer. Johnny Mathis and Eartha Kitt. Although he composed a number of songs in his career, “Fly Me to the Moon” was far and away his biggest hit; it also provided financially for him and partner of 58 years, Thomas Fowler. The Year of Tony Bennett thanks Bart Howard for writing this beautiful song.

This New York Times obituary of Mr. Howard may be of biographical interest.

The song of the day for Saturday, January 13, 2018 is “Fly Me to the Moon.”

About This Song

“Fly Me To The Moon” was written in 1954 by Bart Howard. Originally titled “In Other Words,” the song was not doing that well in spite of several recordings. In 1962, Howard renamed the song to “Fly Me To The Moon,” and the song began to catch on. Tony Bennett’s 1965 recording for If I Ruled The World was a big hit for Bennett. There have been many recordings of the song, including those by Frank Sinatra, Kaye Ballard and many more. However, Bart Howard told Bennett that his 1965 recording was “the definitive performance of this

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Fly Me to the Moon” in 1965 for the album If I Ruled the World: Songs for the Jet Set. The arrangement is by Don Costa.

I think it’s worth noting that other than the MTV Unplugged live recording, Mr. Bennett has never recorded another version of this song. It’s perfect just as it is.

“Fly Me to the Moon,” as well as If I Ruled the World: Songs for the Jet Set, is available from iTunes.

About Today

Once again, it’s Saturday and our video is from 1999, with Joel Smirnoff playing violin with Mr. Bennett as he sings today’s song.

The song of the day for Saturday, July 22, 2017 is “Fly Me To The Moon.”

About This Song

“If I Ruled The World” was written in 1954 by Bart Howard. It was originally titled “In Other Words,” but the song was not doing that well, in spite of several recordings. In 1962, Howard renamed the song to “Fly Me To The Moon,” and the song began to catch on. Tony Bennett’s 1965 recording for If I Ruled The World was a big hit for Bennett. There have been many recordings of the song, including those by Frank Sinatra, Kaye Ballard and many more. However, Bart Howard told Bennett that his 1965 recording was “the definitive performance of this song.”

About This Version

Today I’m featuring that definitive 1965 version of “If I Ruled The World” from If I Ruled The World: Songs for the Jet Set. The arrangement is by Don Costa.

“Fly Me To The Moon,” as well as If I Ruled The World: Songs for the Jet Set, is available from iTunes.

About Today

For our Saturday video, here’s Tony singing today’s song on his 1994 appearance on MTV Unplugged.