The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: Begin the Beguine

The song of the day for Monday, December 9, 2024, is “Begin the Beguine.”

About Today

Today’s song is from Tony Bennett’s 2nd jazz album and third album: The Beat of My Heart. The album was released on December 9, 1957.

About This Song

“Begin the Beguine” was written by Cole Porter for the 1925 musical Jubilee. The song has an unusual structure, having a 108-measure length, as opposed to the standard 32-bar structure of most popular music. One of the earliest popular recordings was Artie Shaw’s instrumental in 1938. The Middle Eastern style of the song is well-served by Shaw’s clarinet solo. The song has an unusual structure, having a 108-measure length, as opposed to the standard 32-bar structure of most popular music. One of the earliest popular recordings was Artie Shaw’s instrumental in 1938. The Middle Eastern style of the song is well-served by Shaw’s clarinet solo.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Begin the Beguine” on October 21, 1957, for his album The Beat of My Heart. Ralph Sharon wrote the arrangement. For this album, Bennett invited guest percussionists to play. Drummer Jo Jones was the guest drummer for “Begin the Beguine.”

The recording was not released on the original 1957 LP, but was added to the 1997 CD re-release.

“Begin the Beguine,” as well as The Beat of My Heart, is available on Apple Music.

And because I once played the clarinet and loved Artie Shaw, here’s his brilliant 1938 recording:

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Song of the Day: Night and Day

The song of the day for Sunday, December 8, 2024, is “Night and Day.”

About This Song

Cole Porter wrote “Night and Day” for the 1932 musical Gay Divorce, where it was introduced by Fred Astaire. The song became and still is quite popular and certainly a standard in the American songbook. Significant recordings include those by Art Tatum, Bill Evans, Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra, Charlie Parker, Ella Fitzgerald, and Django Reinhardt.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Night and Day” in June 1992 for his tribute album to Frank Sinatra: Perfectly Frank. Ralph Sharon wrote the arrangement.

Perfectly Frank won the 1992 Grammy Best Traditional Pop Performance Award.

“Night and Day,” as well as Perfectly Frank, is available on Apple Music.

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Song of the Day: I Love You

The song of the day for Monday, October 7, 2024, is “I Love You.”

About This Song

“I Love You” was written in 1944 for the movie Mexican Hayride. Bing Crosby made the first recording, which topped the Billboard charts for five weeks. Porter wrote the song because of a dare made by his friend Monty Woolley, who said that Porter couldn’t write a song with a cliche title like “I Love You” and included the banal sentiment “It’s spring again and birds on the wing again” and be successfull. Porter accepted the challenge and Crosby’s recording topped the charts. Porter did remark that “the superior melody overcame the ordinary lyric.”

About This Version

Tony Bennett recoreded “I Love You” on January 23, 1962. The song was intended for release for his 1962 album On The Glory Road; however the album was canceled at the last moment. On The Glory Road was finally released in the 2011 Complete Collection box set. This song was arranged by Marty Manning.

“I Love You,” as well as On The Glory Road, is available on Apple Music.

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Song of the Day: Love For Sale

The song of the day for Wednesday, August 28, 2024, is “Love For Sale.”

About This Song

“Love For Sale” was written by Cole Porter for the 1930 Broadway musical The New Yorkers. The song was sung by a prostitute advertising her services. The song was considered rather scandalous at the time. In fact, for the production of The New Yorkers, it was supposed to be sung by the white star Kathryn Crawford, but the song was assigned to an African-American singer instead. In spite of being banned from play on the radio, “Love For Sale” has had many fine recordings, including those by Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday, Dinah Washington, and Miles Davis.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Love For Sale” on October 24, 1957, for The Beat of My Heart. For The Beat of My Heart, Bennett invited guest percussionists to play on the album; “Love For Sale” featured Sabu and Candido. It was arranged by Ralph Sharon.

“Love For Sale,” as well as The Beat of My Heart, is available on Apple Music.

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Song of the Day: Anything Goes

The song of the day for Monday, August 26, 2024, is “Anything Goes.”

About This Song

“Anything Goes” was written in 1934 by Cole Porter for the musical Anything Goes. In Anything Goes, Cole Porter and book writers Guy Bolton and P.G. Wodehouse created one ofthe great musical comedy characters of all time: Reno Sweeney, played by Ethel Merman in the original 1934 production. The score contains many of Porter’s most popular songs, including “I Get a Kick Out You,” “You’re The Top,” and “Blow, Gabriel, Blow.”

About This Version

Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga recorded “Anything Goes” in 2014 for their album Cheek To Cheek. Marion Evans wrote the arrangement.

“Anything Goes,” as well as Cheek To Cheek, is available on Apple Music.