• Home
  • About
    • About This Blog
    • About the Authors
  • Song of the Day
  • Tony Live!
  • Music and Art
    • Music
      • Viva Duets
      • Songs
      • Albums
    • Art
  • And More
    • Collaborator of the Month
    • Songwriter of the Month – 2016
    • News
      • Cheek To Cheek
      • Bennett & Brubeck -The White House Sessions Live 1962
      • Life is a Gift
      • Viva Duets
      • Zen of Bennett
      • Other News
    • About His Collaborators
    • Musings
    • Extras
      • Books
      • Interviews
      • Media
  • The Interactive Tony Bennett Discography

The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

August 6, 2020 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: Pick Yourself Up

The song of the day for Friday, August 7, 2020, is “Pick Yourself Up.”

About This Song

“Pick Yourself Up” was written by Jerome Kern and Dorothy Fields in 1936 for the movie Swing Time, where it was introduced by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. It was used in the early part of the film where Astaire pretends to not be able to dance and asks for Ginger Rogers as his dance instructor just so he could dance with her. This song has been widely recorded, including those by Nat King Cole, Anita O’Day, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, and Diana Krall.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Pick Yourself Up” with the Bill Charlap Trio for the 2015 album The Silver Lining: The Songs of Jerome Kern. I think it’s one of the best recordings on this very fine album, which won the Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards.

“Pick Yourself Up,” as well as The Silver Lining: The Songs of Jerome Kern, is available from Apple Music.

I have a lot of friends who work in the theater as well as friends who are performing musicians. During this pandemic, these artists are, of course, unable to work, as performances for live audiences are impossible under CDC guidelines and just plain common sense. So I was quite pleased when I learned of a project to raise money for the Actor’s Fund, which is providing emergency financial assistance to performing arts and entertainment professionals. Tony DeSare, a talented jazz singer, put together an All-Star Jazz Collab for the Actors Fund of “Pick Yourself Up” to help raise money. The video is just wonderful.

Filed Under: Song of the Day Tagged With: Actor's Fund, Bill Charlap, Dorothy Fields, Jerome Kern, The Silver Lining: The Songs of Jerome Kern, Tony Bennett, Tony DeSare

June 24, 2020 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: On the Sunny Side of the Street

The song of the day for Thursday, June 25, 2020, is “On the Sunny Side of the Street.”

About This Song

“On the Sunny Side of the Street” was written in 1930 by Jimmy McHugh, with lyrics by Dorothy Fields. The song was introduced in Lew Leslie’s International Revue. It was one of the first in a series of cheerful songs to try to cheer people up over the Great Depression. It has proven popular with singers, who love the wonderful Fields lyrics, and jazz players, who love McHugh’s swingy tune.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “On the Sunny Side of the Street” for his 1967 album Tony Makes It Happen! Friend of this site Marion Evans arranged and conducted this song, as well as the entire album.

“On the Sunny Side of the Street,” as well as Tony Makes It Happen!, is available from Apple Music.

Filed Under: Song of the Day Tagged With: Dorothy Fields, Jimmy McHugh, Marion Evans, Tony Bennett, Tony Makes It Happen!

March 3, 2020 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: The Way You Look Tonight

The song of the day for Wednesday, March 4, 2020, is “The Way You Look Tonight.”

About This Song

“The Way You Look Tonight” was written by Jerome Kern and Dorothy Fields for the 1936 film Swing Time; the song won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for the year. Dorothy Fields remarked “The first time Jerry played that melody for me I went out and started to cry. The release absolutely killed me. I couldn’t stop, it was so beautiful.” Dorothy Fields was the first woman to win an Oscar for songwriting. It’s a magnificent love song that has found a strong position as a jazz standard, with recordings by Bing Crosby, Billie Holiday, Mel Tormé, and Frank Sinatra.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this song (in only one take, it’s said) for the 1997 movie My Best Friend’s Wedding. This recording is included in Rarities, Outtakes & Other Delights, Vol. 2, which was included in the 2011 Complete Collection box set.

Last night I was looking for something to watch on TV that had nothing to do with the coronavirus or the election. I found, free on Amazon Prime, the biographical movie about Jerome Kern: Till The Clouds Roll By, released in 1946. The movie is rather cheesy, but the music was wonderful. Great orchestrations and fantastic singers including Judy Garland, Kathryn Grayson, Dinah Shore, Frank Sinatra, June Allyson, Lena Horne, and many more. So, I’ve been in a Jerome Kern mood all day and that always means “The Way You Look Tonight.”

“The Way You Look Tonight,” as well as Rarities, Outtakes & Other Delights, Vol. 2, is available from iTunes.

Filed Under: Song of the Day Tagged With: Dorothy Fields, Jerome Kern, My Best Friend's Wedding, Rarities Outtakes & Other Delights, Till The Clouds Roll By, Tony Bennett

January 27, 2020 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: I Won’t Dance

The song of the day for Tuesday, January 28, 2020, is “I Won’t Dance.”

About Today

We’re honoring the great composer Jerome Kern, who was born 135 years ago this week.

About This Song

“I Won’t Dance” was originally written in 1934 for a London musical called Three Sisters, though the show was a flop and was quickly forgotten. The following year, a film of Roberta was made, and the song was re-purposed, this time with the new Jimmy McHugh and Dorothy Fields lyrics.

About This Version

Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga recorded “I Won’t Dance” in 2014 for their album Cheek to Cheek. The great Marion Evans wrote the arrangement.

“I Won’t Dance,” as well as Cheek to Cheek, is available from iTunes.

Filed Under: Song of the Day Tagged With: Cheek to Cheek, Dorothy Fields, Jerome Kern, Jimmy McHugh, Lady Gaga, Marion Evans, Tony Bennett

January 26, 2020 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: The Way You Look Tonight

The song of the day for Monday, January 27, 2020, is “The Way You Look Tonight.”

About Tonday

The Year of Tony Bennett will focus this week on the work of Jerome Kern, who was born on January 27, 1885. As Bill Charlap said, upon the release of The Silver Lining: The Songs of Jerome Kern:

Jerome Kern is the angel at the top of the tree for American popular songwriters and writers of the theater. He influenced George Gershwin. He influenced Richard Rodgers. He influenced all of the songwriters.

As we work through a week’s worth of Kern songs sung by Tony Bennett, we’ll see how relevant virtually all the songs remain in our time. Quite a feat for a man born 135 years ago.

About This Song

“The Way You Look Tonight” was written by Jerome Kern and Dorothy Fields. The song was introduced by Fred Astaire in the 1936 film Swing Time; the song won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for the year. Dorothy Fields was the first woman to win an Oscar for songwriting. It’s a magnificent love song that has found a strong position as a jazz standard, with recordings by Bing Crosby, Billie Holiday, Mel Tormé, and Frank Sinatra.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this version of “The Way You Look Tonight” for the 1997 film My Best Friends Wedding, accompanied by the Ralph Sharon Trio. The recording was collected on Rarities, Outtakes & Other Delights Vol. 2, originally released on CD in the Tony Bennett Complete Collection and is now available from iTunes.

“The Way You Look Tonight,” as well as Rarities, Outtakes & Other Delights, Vol. 2, is available from iTunes.

Filed Under: Song of the Day Tagged With: Dorothy Fields, Jerome Kern, My Best Friend's Wedding, Tony Bennett

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 15
  • Next Page »

Subscribe to The Year of Tony Bennett

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Current Reader Favorites

  • Song of the Day: The Right To Love
  • Duke Ellington and the Harlem Renaissance
  • Song of the Day: The Right To Love
  • Song of the Day: It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Aint' Got That Swing)
  • Song of the Day: Dat Dere
  • Song of the Day: The Right To Love
  • Home
  • About
  • Song of the Day
  • Tony Live!
  • Music and Art
  • And More
  • The Interactive Tony Bennett Discography

Copyright © 2021 The Year of Tony Bennett · Genesis Framework by StudioPress · WordPress