The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: Moonlight in Vermont

The song of the day for Saturday, January 7, 2023, is “Moonlight in Vermont.”

About This Song

“Moonlight in Vermont” was written in 1944 by Karl Suessdorf and John Blackburn. The song was made famous by Margaret Whiting, who recorded it in 1944 with Billy Butterfield and his Orchestra. It has been popular ever since, with other recordings by Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday, and Ella Fitzgerald.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Moonlight in Vermont” in July 1995 for Here’s To The Ladies, arranged and conducted by Bill Holman.

For this album, Tony Bennett chose songs strongly associated with the most outstanding American female singers from the 20th century. “Moonlight in Vermont” is a tribute to Margaret Whiting.

“Moonlight in Vermont,” as well as Here’s To The Ladies is available on Apple Music.

Here’s Margaret Whiting’s original 1945 recording of “Moonlight in Vermont.”

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Song of the Day: I’ll Be Home For Christmas

The song of the day for Tuesday, December 20, 2022, the seventh day of The Twelve Days of a Tony Bennett Christmas, is “I’ll Be Home For Christmas.”

About This Song

“I’ll Be Home For Christmas” was written in 1943 by Walter Kent, with lyrics by Kim Gannon and Buck Ram. This song, released at the height of World War II, tells the story of a soldier stationed overseas, who yearns to be home with family for Christmas, if only in his dreams. Bing Crosby recorded this song in 1943 and it was a bestseller. The War Department issued a V-Disc with Crosby’s versions of this song and “White Christmas” that was sent to soldiers stationed all over the world. One wonders if the young soldier Anthony Benedetto, who was stationed in Germany, might have listened to this v-disc at some point.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this version of “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” in 2004 and released it in 2008 on A Swingin’ Christmas. It was arranged by Bill Holman.

“I’ll Be Home For Christmas,” as well as A Swingin’ Christmas is available on Apple Music.

We also have a video of Tony Bennett singing this song on Jon Stewart’s The Daily Show.

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Song of the Day: Santa Claus is Coming to Town

The song of the day for December 15, 2022, the second day of The Twelve Days of a Tony Bennett Christmas, is “Santa Claus is Coming to Town.”

About This Song

“Santa Claus is Coming to Town” was written in 1934 by John Frederick Coots and Haven Gillespie. The song had a spectacular debut. The song was first sung on Eddie Cantor’s radio show in November 1934. On the day after the broadcast, there were 100,000 orders for the sheet music; by Christmas, over 400,000 copies of the sheet music had been sold.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” in 2004 and released it in 2008 for A Swingin’ Christmas. It was arranged by Bill Holman and features Andy Snitzer on alto sax. The album features The Count Basie Big Band.

“Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” as well as A Swingin’ Christmas is available on Apple Music.

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Song of the Day: Over The Rainbow

The song of the day for Friday, June 10, 2022, is “Over The Rainbow.”

About Today

Please join The Year of Tony Bennett in remembering the great Judy Garland, who was born in Grand Rapid, Minnesota exactly 100 years ago today, June 10, 1922.

I choose to say just one thing about her: I think she was the greatest female singer of the 20th century and her music will never grow old or tired or dated.

About This Song

“Over the Rainbow” was written by Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg for the 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz and is one of the most widely known songs by Arlen or Harburg. Interestingly, the producers wanted to cut the song from the film, as they felt it slowed downed the movie. Thankfully, the preview audiences preferred the movie with the song. “Over The Rainbow” ranked as the #1 song of the 20th century per the Recording Industry Association of America and the National Endowment of the Arts. The song has always been closely associated with Judy Garland. In a letter to Harold Arlen, Judy Garland wrote that the song “…has become part of my life. It’s so symbolic of everybody’s dreams and wishes that I’m sure that’s why some people get tears in their eyes when they hear it. I’ve sung it thousands of times and it’s still the song that’s closest to my heart.”

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this version of “Over The Rainbow” in July 1995 for his album Here’s To The Ladies, which honors the great female singers of the 20th century. It was arranged by Bill Holman.

“Over The Rainbow,” as well as Here’s To The Ladies is available on Apple Music.

Of course, we have Judy singing today’s song from the 1939 classic The Wizard Of Oz.

I’d like to close with a clip of Tony’s visit to The Judy Garland Show, aired on July 30, 1963. You can see here how fond they were of each other.

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Song of the Day: Somewhere Over The Rainbow

The song of the day for Friday, April 8, 2022, is “Over The Rainbow.”

About Today

Today we are celebrating one of America’s great lyricists: E.Y. “Yip” Harburg, who was born on April 8, 1896. Known mostly for his work with Harold Arlen, he also wrote lyrics for Vernon Duke, Arthur Schwartz, Burton Lane, and Jerome Kern.

About This Song

“Over The Rainbow” was written by Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg in 1939. Probably the most widely known of all Arlen’s songs, “Over The Rainbow” is from the great Wizard Of Oz. Interestingly, the producers wanted to cut the song from the film, as they felt it slowed downed the movie. Thankfully, the preview audiences preferred the movie with the song. “Over The Rainbow” ranked as the #1 song of the 20th century per the Recording Industry Association of America and the National Endowment of the Arts. It has always been closely associated with Judy Garland. In a letter to Harold Arlen, Judy Garland wrote that the song

has become part of my life. It’s so symbolic of everybody’s dreams and wishes that I’m sure that’s why some people get tears in their eyes when they hear it. I’ve sung it thousands of times and it’s still the song that’s closest to my heart.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this version of “Over The Rainbow” in 1995 for the album Here’s To The Ladies. In this album, Bennett recorded songs associated with the 20th century’s greatest women singers. “Over The Rainbow” was, of course, for Judy Garland. The album was arranged and conducted by Bill Holman.

“Over The Rainbow,” as well as Here’s Top The Ladies is available on Apple Music.

As we are honoring Yip Harburg, I have a clip from a 1979 television program special They Wrote The Songs. Yip Harburg was the guest for one episode. The clip is 11 minutes long and I hope you can find the time to watch it. He talks about the importance of music in our lives, and segues into “Over The Rainbow.” Next, he talks about the making of The Wizard of Oz and some of the lyrics he wrote. He ends with the story of how he and Harold Arlen wrote one of the greatest songs in the Great American Songbook, “Last Night When We Were Young.”

Here’s Tony Bennett’s recording of “Last Night When We Were Young” from his 1992 album Perfectly Frank.

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