The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: Easy Come, Easy Go

The song of the day for Thursday, May 16, 2019, is “Easy Come, Easy Go.”

About This Song

“Easy Come, Easy Go” was written in 1934 by Johnny Green and Edward Heyman, the same songwriting team who wrote “Body and Soul.”

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Easy Come, Easy Go” in 1971 for the 1972 album With Love. Robert Farnon did the very fine arrangement.

Easy Come, Easy Go – 2011 Remaster

Easy Come, Easy Go – 2011 Remaster, a song by Tony Bennett on Spotify

“Easy Come, Easy Go,” as well as With Love, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Body and Soul

The song of the day for Saturday, March 30, 2019, is “Body and Soul.”

About This Song

Today’s song, “Body and Soul,” was composed in 1930 by Johnny Green, with lyrics by Edward Heyman, Robert Sour, and Frank Eyton.

Ted Gioia, in his book The Jazz Standards, says that Body and Soul “is the granddaddy of jazz ballads, the quintessential torch song, and the ultimate measuring rod for tenor sax players of all generations. Even in the new millennium, this 1930 composition continues to serve as the cornerstone of the repertoire.” Louis Armstrong recorded the song first, followed in the 1930s by recordings from primarily white society bands, such as those led by Paul Whiteman.

That said, some early recordings by jazz artists including Benny Goodman and especially Art Tatum started to cement this song as a serious jazz standard (in fact, it’s rated #1 on the jazzstandards.com website). However, the Coleman Hawkins recording from 1939 is widely acknowledged to have made the song a true jazz standard. The Hawkins recording was followed by great jazz recordings by Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Charles Mingus, Thelonious Monk, Art Pepper, Dave Brubeck and many more. Fine vocal recordings include those by Billie Holiday and Tony Bennett.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded today’s version of “Body and Soul” in 1989 for his autobiographical album Astoria: Portrait Of The Artist, released in 1990. Jorge Calendrelli did the arrangement.

Body and Soul

Body and Soul, a song by Tony Bennett on Spotify

“Body and Soul,” as well as Astoria: Portrait of the Artist, is available from iTunes.

About Today

Our video today is the filming of the recording session with Tony and Amy Winehouse of “Body and Soul” for Duets II. Made in March 2011, it was her last recording. She died from an alcohol overdose in July 2011.

The recording won the 2012 Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.

Tony Bennett, Amy Winehouse – Body and Soul (from Duets II: The Great Performances)

Tony Bennett & Amy Winehouse’s official music video for ‘Body and Soul’. Click to listen to Tony Bennett on Spotify: http://smarturl.it/TonyBennettSpotify?IQid=TonyBBAS As featured on Duets II.

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Song of the Day: I Cover the Waterfront

The song of the day for Wednesday, March 27, 2019, is “I Cover the Waterfront.”

About This Song

“I Cover the Waterfront” was written in 1933 by Johnny Green, with lyrics by Edward Heyman. The song was inspired by the 1932 novel of the same name by Max Miller, which was also made into a film and re-scored just prior to release to include the Johnny Green song. It has been recorded by Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, and even John Lee Hooker.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “I Cover the Waterfront” in 1958 for his 1959 album Hometown, My Town. The entire album was arranged and conducted by Ralph Burns.

I Cover The Waterfront – 2011 Remaster

I Cover The Waterfront – 2011 Remaster, a song by Tony Bennett on Spotify

“I Cover the Waterfront,” as well as Hometown, My Town, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Body and Soul

The song of the day for Saturday, April 21, 2018 is “Body and Soul.”

About This Song

“Body and Soul” was written in 1930 by Johnny Green, with lyrics by Edward Heyman, Robert Sour and Frank Eyton.

Ted Gioia, in his book The Jazz Standards, says that Body and Soul “is the granddaddy of jazz ballads, the quintessential torch song, and the ultimate measuring rod for tenor sax players of all generations. Even in the new millennium, this 1930 composition continues to serve as the cornerstone of the repertoire.” Louis Armstrong recorded the song first, followed in the 1930s by recordings from primarily white society bands, such as those led by Paul Whiteman. That said, some early recordings by jazz artists including Benny Goodman and especially Art Tatum started to cement this song as a serious jazz standard (in fact, it’s rated #1 on the jazzstandards.com website). However, the Coleman Hawkins recording from 1939 is widely acknowledged to have made the song a true jazz standard. The Hawkins recording was followed by great jazz recordings by Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Charles Mingus, Thelonious Monk, Art Pepper, Dave Brubeck and many more. Fine vocal recordings include those by Billie Holiday and Billy Eckstine.

About This Version

Tony Bennett sang “Body and Soul” on his remarkable live performance in 1994 on the series MTV Unplugged. The album of the performance, MTV Unplugged, not only won 1995 Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance but also the coveted Album of the Year.

Body and Soul - Live Version

Listen to Body and Soul - Live Version on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1994


“Body and Soul,” as well as MTV Unplugged, is available from iTunes.

About Today

Our video today features the recording of Tony and Amy Winehouse recording “Body and Soul” in 2014 for Duets II, which was the last recording Amy Winehouse made.

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Song of the Day: Body and Soul

The song of the day for Friday, September 29, 2017 is “Body and Soul.”

About This Song

“Body and Soul” was written in 1930, with music by Johnny Green and lyrics by Edward Heyman, Robert Sour and Frank Eyton.

Ted Gioia, in his book The Jazz Standards, says that Body and Soul “is the granddaddy of jazz ballads, the quintessential torch song, and the ultimate measuring rod for tenor sax players of all generations. Even in the new millennium, this 1930 composition continues to serve as the cornerstone of the repertoire.” Louis Armstrong recorded the song first, followed in the 1930s by recordings from primarily white society bands, such as those led by Paul Whiteman. That said, some early recordings by jazz artists including Benny Goodman and especially Art Tatum started to cement this song as a serious jazz standard. However, the Coleman Hawkins recording from 1939 is widely acknowledged to have made the song a true jazz standard. The Hawkins recording was followed by great jazz recordings by Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Charles Mingus, Thelonious Monk, Art Pepper, Dave Brubeck and many more. Fine vocal recordings include those by Billie Holiday and Tony Bennett.

About This Version

I know that I feature this song fairly often, but I feel that I owe you all an apology. I almost always play either the version from Astoria: Portrait of the Artist or the duet version with Amy Winehouse from Duets II. I realised just now that I’ve ignored this exquisite recording of “Body and Soul” from the 1994 MTV Unplugged performance. It’s a gorgeous arrangement by Ralph Sharon and features bassist Doug Richeson.

Body and Soul - Live Version

Listen to Body and Soul - Live Version on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1994


“Body and Soul,” as well as MTV Unplugged, is available from iTunes.