The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: All Of You

The song of the day for Friday, June 3, 2016 is “All Of You.”

About This Song

“All Of You” was written by Cole Porter for the 1954 musical Silk Stockings, where it was introduced by Don Ameche. Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse starred in the 1957 film version of Silk Stockings. Bill Evans played this song on his legendary 1961 album Sunday at the Village Vanguard.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “All Of You” several times. Today, we feature the 1993 version from Steppin’ Out, which was arranged by Bennett and Ralph Sharon.

All of You

Listen to All of You on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1993


“All Of You,” as well as , is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Isn’t This A Lovely Day

The song of the day for Sunday, May 22, 2016 is “Isn’t This A Lovely Day.”

About This Song

Irving Berlin wrote this delightful song in 1935 for the Fred Astaire / Ginger Rogers movie Top Hat. In the film, Astaire and Rogers are caught in a rainstorm while sitting in an outdoor gazebo. The song was introduced by Fred Astaire. This song has also been recorded by Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Diana Krall, Jeri Southern and Tony Bennett.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this very nice version of “Isn’t This A Lovely Day” in 1987 for his album Bennett/Berlin. Mr. Bennett arranged the vocals for the song and does a wonderful thing in capturing the feel of the rain as well as the Fred Astaire dancing.

Isn"t This a Lovely Day

Listen to Isn"t This a Lovely Day on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1987


“Isn’t This A Lovely Day,” as well as Bennett/Berlin, is available from iTunes.

And here’s the video of the number. Because it’s Fred Astaire, that’s why. And for once, Ginger Rogers didn’t have to dance in high heels.

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Song of the Day: Top Hat, White Tie and Tails

The song of the day for Wednesday, May 18, 2016 is “Top Hat, White Tie and Tails.”

About This Song

Irving Berlin wrote “Top Hat, White Tie and Tails” for the 1935 film Top Hat, starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. The song was introduced by Mr. Astaire. The film is widely considered to be one of the best of the RKO Astaire and Rogers films; the American Film Institute ranked it 15th on its list of best musicals.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Top Hat, White Tie and Tails” in 1993 for his album Steppin’ Out, a wonderful collection of songs introduced by Fred Astaire. Tony Bennett and Ralph Sharon arranged the number.

Top Hat, White Tie and Tails

Listen to Top Hat, White Tie and Tails on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1993


“Top Hat, White Tie and Tails,” as well as Steppin’ Out, is available from iTunes.

And, once again, a non-Saturday video. The fabulous Fred Astaire!

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Song of the Day: City of Angels

The song of the day for Tuesday, October 13, 2015 is “City of Angels.”

About This Song

In addition to Fred Astaire’s phenomenal gifts as a singer, dancer and actor, he was also a fine songwriter. In addition to “City of Angels,” written with Tommy Wolfe, he also wrote “I’m Building Up to an Awful Letdown” (written with Johnny Mercer), and “It’s Like Taking Candy From a Baby,” which he recorded with Benny Goodman.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “City of Angels” in January 1986 at Olympic Studios in London. It was released on The Art of Excellence, which was arranged and conducted by Jorge Calandrelli. It features the Ralph Sharon Trio, with Paul Langosch on bass and Joe LaBarbera on drums as well as the The U.K. Orchestra Limited.

City Of Angels

Listen to City Of Angels on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1986


“City of Angels,” as well as The Art of Excellence, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: I Won’t Dance

The song of the day for Sunday, October 4, 2015 is “I Won’t Dance.”

About This Song

Today’s song, “I Won’t Dance,” has a wonderful tune written by Jerome Kern. The lyrics are, on the other hand, a bit complicated. The song was originally written for for a 1934 London musical called Three Sisters with lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and Otto Harbach; alas the production was flop and closed quickly. Kern decided to use this great tune for the 1935 film of Roberta, starring Irene Dunne with Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire. This time, the lyrics were from Jimmy McHugh and Dorothy Fields. I won’t even begin to figure out how they split the royalties.

About These Versions

Tony Bennett has recorded “I Won’t Dance” twice. The first time was in 2014 with Lady Gaga on their album Cheek To Cheek, with a great big band arrangement from Marion Evans. I’ve always loved this song and thought that Bennett and Gaga sang it just great. It was also quite effective on the Cheek To Cheek television special. [I don’t care what the Television Academy thinks. As far as I’m concerned, it earned the Emmy Award for Best Variety Special hands down.]

The second recording was just released in September 2015 on Bennett’s album with Bill Charlap–The Silver Lining: The Songs of Jerome Kern. Bennett and Charlap arranged this version 3/4 waltz time. It’s quiet and sweet; Bennett dances lightly over the piano.

“I Won’t Dance” is a perfect example of why I started this Sunday feature of presenting different versions of the same song sung by Tony Bennett. Whether separated by decades, as in last week’s song, or a matter of months, as for today’s song, it is telling on many levels how this master treats the material. Just brilliant, Tony Bennett is.

2014

I Won"t Dance

Listen to I Won"t Dance on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett, Lady Gaga · 2014


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

2015

I Won"t Dance

Tony Bennett, Bill Charlap · The Silver Lining - The Songs of Jerome Kern · Song · 2015


“I Won’t Dance,” as well as The Silver Lining: The Songs of Jerome Kern, is available from iTunes.

Because I’m in a great mood today, here’s a video of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers from Roberta. This film is the first time they worked together. I don’t know if Astaire actually played the piano or not. If he didn’t, it’s the best fake piano playing I’ve ever seen on film. And if he did play piano, he plays great! And Ginger’s gown is fantastic!

Your author is off to the Newport, Oregon Jazz Festival for concert by Bill Charlap and his Trio, also joined by his wife and pianist, Renee Rosnes. I’ll report in a few days.