The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: Old Devil Moon

The song of the day for Saturday, June 24, 2017 is “Old Devil Moon.”

About This Song

“Old Devil Moon” was written in 1947 by Burton Lane (music) and Yip Harburg (lyrics) for the Broadway musical Finian’s Rainbow, which also gave us “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?” While Alec Wilder was no fan of “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?”, in America Popular Song, he praises “Old Devil Moon” as “a well-written, wholly convincing song. It drives, and its initial intensity is sustained throughout.”

About This Version

I found myself returning to Cloud 7 for another song for Saturday.

Tony Bennett recorded “Old Devil Moon” in 1954 for his album Cloud 7. The arrangement is from Chuck Wayne, who arranged most of the album.

Old Devil Moon

Listen to Old Devil Moon on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1955


“Old Devil Moon,” as well as Cloud 7, is available from iTunes.

About Today

For our Saturday YouTube video, here’s Tony singing “Old Devil Moon” from his 1994 MTV Unplugged live televised concert. Playing with Bennett is Ralph Sharon (piano), Doug Richeson (bass) and Clayton Cameron (drums).

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Song of the Day: Old Devil Moon

The song of the day for Tuesday, April 18, 2017 is “Old Devil Moon.”

About This Song

“Old Devil Moon” was written for the 1947 musical Finian’s Rainbow, which also gave us “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?” While Alec Wilder was no fan of “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?”, in America Popular Song he praises “Old Devil Moon” as “a well-written, wholly convincing song. It drives, and its initial intensity is sustained throughout.”

About This Version

Today’s recording of “Old Devil Moon” is from Tony Bennett’s first LP album: Cloud 7, released in 1955.

Cloud 7 was the album that he had wanted to make–a solid jazz long-playing album with a solid group of jazz musicians. Jazz critic Thom Jurek said that “The mood is nocturnal, elegant, amorous, hip.” As a first album by a young singer (Bennett was not even 30 when he made Cloud 7), it’s a remarkable album that defined Bennett not only as vastly popular singer, but a jazz artist with impeccable taste and true vision of his own artistry.

Old Devil Moon

Listen to Old Devil Moon on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1955


“Old Devil Moon,” as well as Cloud 7, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Old Devil Moon

The song of the day for Saturday, February 4, 2017 is “Old Devil Moon.”

About This Song

“Old Devil Moon” was written by Burton Lane and Yip Harburg for the 1947 musical Finian’s Rainbow, which also gave us “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?” While Alec Wilder was no fan of “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?”, in America Popular Song, he praises “Old Devil Moon” as “a well-written, wholly convincing song. It drives, and its initial intensity is sustained throughout.”

About This Version

Tony Bennett has recorded “Old Devil Moon,” starting with his 1954 version for his first jazz album, Cloud 7. Today, however, we’re featuring his 1967 version from Tony Makes It Happen!, arranged by Marion Evans, our musical collaborator of the month. One of the things I love about Evans’ arrangements is that they always grab my attention from the very first notes — they make me want to listen. The violins at the beginning of this recording are a good example of this.

Old Devil Moon

Listen to Old Devil Moon on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1967


“Old Devil Moon,” as well as Tony Makes It Happen!, is available from iTunes.

About Today

Our Saturday video features Tony singing today’s song from his award-winning 1994 MTV Unplugged televised concert.

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Song of the Day: The Lady’s In Love With You

The song of the day for Wednesday, February 1, 2017 is “The Lady’s In Love With You.”

About This Song

“The Lady’s In Love With You” was written by Burton Lane (music) and Frank Loesser (lyrics )for the 1939 film Some Like It Hot (not to be confused with the excellent 1959 Billy Wilder film), where it was introduced by Bob Hope and Shirley Ross. It’s been widely recorded, including those by Tony Bennett, Glenn Miller, Margaret Whiting, and Michael Feinstein.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “The Lady’s In Love With You” in 1967 for his album Tony Makes It Happen! The arrangement is by our collaborator of the month, Marion Evans. I adore the way this song starts out — big and bold — and the listener knows a great ride is in store. Relatively short at 1:43 minutes, every second is perfect. I can’t think of better song to start with to honor the work of this arranger.

The Lady"s In Love with You

Listen to The Lady"s In Love with You on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1967


“The Lady’s In Love With You,” as well as Tony Makes It Happen!, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Old Devil Moon

The song of the day for Sunday, January 15, 2017 is “Old Devil Moon.”

About This Song

Today’s song, “Old Devil Moon,” was written by Burton Lane and Yip Harburg for the 1947 musical Finian’s Rainbow, which also gave us “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?” While Alec Wilder was no fan of “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?”, in America Popular Song,he praises “Old Devil Moon” as “a well-written, wholly convincing song. It drives, and its initial intensity is sustained throughout.”

About This Version

I’m featuring Tony Bennett’s first recording of “Old Devil Moon” for his first jazz album, Cloud 7, released in 1955. Jazz critic Thom Jurek described the album thus: “The mood is nocturnal, elegant, amorous, hip.” It’s a great jazz vocal album that holds up 61 years after its initial release.

Old Devil Moon

Listen to Old Devil Moon on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1955


“Old Devil Moon,” as well as Cloud 7, is available from iTunes.

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