The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: Solitude

The song of the day for Wednesday, April 1, 2015 is “Solitude.”

About This Song

“Solitude” was composed in 1934 by Duke Ellington, with lyrics added later from Eddie DeLange and Irving Mills. One of his masterpieces, Ellington is said to have written “Solitude” in twenty minutes at the recording session, as they were one number short (Ted Gioia in Jazz Standards). It’s a very strong song for both vocalists and instrumentalists. Ellington made over a hundred recordings of this song. Other great recordings include those by Paul Robeson, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and Billy Eckstine.

About This Version

Today’s song, “Solitude,” is the first song on Tony Bennett On Holiday. The strings were arranged and conducted by Jorge Calandrelli.

Solitude

Tony Bennett · Tony Bennett On Holiday: A Tribute To Billie Holiday · Song · 1997


“Solitude,” as well as Tony Bennett On Holiday, is available from iTunes.

About Billie Holiday’s Version

photograph by William Gottlieb
photograph by William Gottlieb

This version of “Solitude” was recorded on May 9, 1941 (mx 30460-1) by Billie Holiday and Her Orchestra. The orchestra consisted of Roy Eldrige (trumpet), Ernie Powell (clarinet, tenor sax), Lester Boone and Jimmy Powell (alto sax), Eddie Heywood (piano), Paul Chapman (guitar), Grachan Moncur (bass) and Herbert Crowens (drums). It was released in 1941 on the Okey label.

Solitude - Take 1

Billie Holiday · Lady Day: The Complete Billie Holiday On Columbia (1933-1944) · Song · 1933


The Complete Billie Holiday On Columbia set is available from Amazon on CD as well as MP3 download.

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Song of the Day: Darn That Dream

The song of the day for Friday, January 30, 2015 is “Darn That Dream.”

About This Song

Written by Jimmy Van Heusen and Eddie DeLange, “Darn That Dream” was written for the 1939 musical Swingin’ the Dream, an adaptation of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer’s Night Dream. The cast had many big names: Louis Armstrong playing Bottom, Maxine Sullivan as Titania, Bill Bailey and Dorothy Dandridge. It only ran for 13 performances and is considered to be a flop. Fortunately, “Darn That Dream” proved to be a big hit and earned some money for the investors. Billie Holiday recorded “Darn That Dream” in 1957.

About This Version

“Darn That Dream” is the 10th and final song on our album of the month, Cloud 7. It is my personal favorite from this album. Perhaps it has to do with working on several productions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream during my career in theater, but when I imagine Louis Armstrong, in the role of Bottom, singing this song, I swoon. Tony Bennett sings this song perfectly; I completely believe that dream. The very effective arrangement is by Chuck Wayne.

About Today

Today concludes our examination of Cloud 7, Tony Bennett’s first full-length album. Watch for February’s album of the month to be announced on Sunday.

Darn That Dream

Listen to Darn That Dream on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1955

“Darn That Dream,” as well as Cloud 7, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Darn That Dream

The song of the day for Monday, August 11, 1954 is “Darn That Dream.”

About This Song

“Darn That Dream” was written by Jimmy Van Heusen and Eddie DeLange for the 1939 Broadway musical Swingin’ the Dream, an adaptation of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer’s Night Dream. The cast had many big names: Louis Armstrong playing Bottom, Maxine Sullivan as Titania, Bill Bailey and Dorothy Dandridge. It only ran for 13 performances and is considered to be a flop. Fortunately, “Darn That Dream” proved to be a big hit and earned some money for the investors. Another significant recording of “Darn That Dream” is by Billie Holiday, from her 1957 album Body and Soul.

About This Version

Today’s song is from Tony Bennett’s first album Cloud 7. It was arranged by Chuck Wayne.

About Today

Tony Bennett recorded “Darn That Dream” exactly sixty years ago today: August 11, 1954. You can click the date to read more about this session on our sister site, The Interactive Tony Bennett Discography.

Our congratulations to Mr. Bennett on his amazing recording career and for this wonderful first album: Cloud 7. One of my favorite reviews of this album said that “the mood is nocturnal, elegant, amorous, hip.” It’s all of those things and more.

http://open.spotify.com/track/1h3EHlaKpPhHBIpyHFRJo0
“Darn That Dream,” as well as the album Cloud 7, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Solitude

The song of the day for Wednesday, February 19, 2014 is “Solitude.”

About This Song

Duke Ellington wrote “Solitude” in 1934, with lyrics by Eddie DeLange and the ubiquitous Irving Mills. One of his masterpieces, Ellington is said to have written “Solitude” in twenty minutes at the recording session, as they were one number short (Ted Gioia in Jazz Standards). It’s a very strong song for both vocalists and instrumentalists. Ellington made over a hundred recordings of this song. Other great recordings include those by Paul Robeson, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday and Billy Eckstine.

About This Version

Today’s version of “Solitude” is the first version that Tony Bennett recorded. He recorded it in 1958 with the Count Basie Orchestra for the 1959 album “In Person!”

http://open.spotify.com/track/4l0u7b7x33jNwxuYt1SBdT
“Solitude,” as well as the album In Person!, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Darn That Dream

The song of the day for Monday, November 11, 2013 is “Darn That Dream.”

About This Song

“Darn That Dream” was written by Jimmy Van Heusen, with lyrics by Eddie DeLange, for the short-lived Broadway musical Swingin’ The Dream, which opened in 1939.

Swingin’ The Dream was a musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, with an African-American cast including Butterfly McQueen, Louis Armstrong, Bill Bailey, Moms Mabley and the Dandridge Sisters. Armstrong played the role of Bottom and introduced today’s song. Alas, it only ran for 13 performances.

Louis Armstrong Performing in Swing Version of

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Darn That Dream” for his first full album, Cloud 7, released in 1955. The song was arranged by Chuck Wayne, who also played guitar for the album. You can read more about Cloud 7 on The Interactive Tony Bennett Discography.

http://open.spotify.com/track/49qnUsYpaH3zLa20TCSYOy
“Darn That Dream,” as well as the album Cloud 7, is available from iTunes.