The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: My Foolish Heart

The song of the day for Monday, August 17, 2020, is “My Foolish Heart.”

About This Week

Every one of the songs that Bill Evans and Tony Bennett recorded is wonderful. For the rest of the week and in honor of the birthday of Evans, I’ll be featuring more songs that they recorded.

About This Song

“My Foolish Heart” was written in 1949 by Victor Young and Ned Washington for a widely-panned film of the same name, based on a J.D. Salinger short story. Time Magazine excoriated the score: “nothing offsets the blight of such tear-splashed excesses as the bloop-bleep-bloop of a sentimental ballad on the soundtrack.”

About This Version

Bill Evans and Tony Bennett recorded “My Foolish Heart” in 1975 for The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album.

“My Foolish Heart,” as well as The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album, is available from Apple Music.

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Song of the Day: Some Other Time

The song of the day for Sunday, August 16, 2020, is “Some Other Time.”

About Today

Today The Year of Tony Bennett is celebrating the birthday of one of America’s finest jazz pianists–Bill Evans. William John Evans was born on August 16, 1929, in Plainfield, New Jersey. Evans was classically trained at Southeastern Louisiana University and the Mannes School of Music, where he majored in composition and received the Artist Diploma. In 1955, he moved to New York City, where he worked with bandleader and theorist George Russell. In 1958, Evans joined Miles Davis’s sextet, and in 195, recorded Kind of Blue, the best-selling jazz album of all time.

In late 1959, Evans left the Miles Davis band and began his career as a leader, with bassist Scott LaFaro and drummer Paul Motian, a group now regarded as a seminal modern jazz trio. In 1961, ten days after finishing an engagement at the New York Village Vanguard jazz club, LaFaro died in a car accident. After months of seclusion, Evans reemerged with a new trio, featuring bassist Chuck Israels.

Tony Bennett fans are familiar with the two albums he made with Tony Bennett in the 1970s: The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album and Together Again.

Bill Evans died on September 15, 1980, at the age of 51.

About This Song

“Some Other Time” was composed in 1944 by Leonard Bernstein, with lyrics by Adolph Green and Betty Comden. It was written for the musical On The Town, the story of three sailors on leave in New York City and their romantic adventures. This song is sung at the end by two of the couples. Inexplicably, this beautiful song was cut from the 1949 film version.

About This Version

Tony Bennett and Bill Evans recorded “Some Other Time” in 1975 for The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album.

“Some Other Time,” as well as The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album, is available from Apple Music.

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Song of the Day: We’ll Be Together Again

The song of the day for Tuesday, August 4, 2020, is “We’ll Be Together Again.”

About This Song

“We’ll Be Together Again” was written by Carl T. Fischer in 1945, who was Frankie Laine’s pianist and musical director. Fischer asked Laine to write the lyrics, which he, quite nicely. In addition to the recording by Tony Bennett and Bill Evans, this song has been recorded by Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong, Frank Sinatra, and, of course, Frankie Laine.

About This Version

Tony Bennett and Bill Evans recorded “We’ll Be Together Again” in 1975 for their first album: The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album.

“We’ll Be Together Again,” as well as The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album, is available from Apple Music.

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Song of the Day: Some Other Time

The song of the day for Thursday, July 16, 2020, is “Some Other Time.”

About Today

Today we are honoring Bill Evans, who was born in Plainfield, New Jersey, on July 16, 1929, and died on September 15, 1980, in New York City. You can read more about Evans at the Bill Evans Webpages site.

About This Song

“Some Other Time” was written by Leonard Bernstein, Adolph Green, and Betty Comden for the musical On The Town, the story of three sailors on leave in New York City and their romantic adventures. This song is sung at the end by two of the couples. Inexplicably, this beautiful song was cut from the 1949 film version.

About This Version

Tony Bennett and Bill Evans recorded “Some Other Time,” as well as all of the songs on The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album, over three days in June 1975.

“Some Other Time,” as well as The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album, is available from Apple Music.

Tony insisted that Bill include his solo piano version of “The Bad and the Beautiful” on their second album, Together Again.

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Song of the Day: But Beautiful

The song of the day for Tuesday, July 7, 2020, is “But Beautiful.”

About This Song

“But Beautiful” was written by Jimmy Van Heusen and Johnny Burke in 1947. It was written for Bing Crosby to sing in the movie The Road to Rio. The song has been widely recorded, including recordings by Bill Evans, Johnny Hartman, Billie Holiday, Gregory Porter, Frank Sinatra, and Nat King Cole.

About This Version

Tony Bennett and Bill Evans recorded “But Beautiful” in June 1975 for their first album The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album. This song is one of your author’s favorite songs sung by Tony Bennett and I hope you enjoy it.

“But Beautiful,” as well as The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album, is available from Apple Music.

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