The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

By Leave a Comment

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

The song of the day for Thursday, September 5, 2024, is “Top Hat, Top Hat and Tails.”

About This Song

“Top Hat, White Tie and Tails” was written by Irving Berlin 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 July 1993 for album Steppin’ Out, consisting of songs introduced by Fred Astaire. It was arranged by Tony Bennett and Ralph Sharon.

“Top Hat, White Tie and Tails,” as well as Steppin’ Out, is available on Apple Music.

Here’s Fred Astaire singing and dancing “Top Hat, White Tie and Tails” from Top Hat.

By Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: Nice Work If You Can Get It

The song of the day for Thursday, August 29, 2024, is “Nice Work If You Can Get It.”

About This Song

“Nice Work If You Can Get It” was written by George and Ira Gershwin for the 1937 film Damsel In Distress, starring Fred Astaire, who introduced the song. It has been widely recorded by artists including Astaire, Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Sarah Vaughan, and Billie Holiday.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Nice Work If You Can Get It” in July 1993 for his album of Fred Astaire songs, Steppin’ Out. It was arranged by Bennett and Ralph Sharon.

“Nice Work If You Can Get It,” as well as Steppin’ Out, is available on Apple Music.

Here’s Fred Astaire’s performance of “Nice Work If You Can Get It” from Damsel In Distress, where he partners with a drum kit:

By Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: Isn’t This a Lovely Day?

The song of the day for Tuesday, August 20, 2024, is “Isn’t This a Lovely Day?.”

About This Song

“Isn’t This a Lovely Day?” was written by Irving Berlin for the 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 outdoors gazebo. The song was introduced by Fred Astaire. This song has also been recorded by Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Diana Krall, and Jeri Southern.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Isn’t This a Lovely Day?” in May 1987 for the album Bennett/Berlin. The arrangement was written by Tony Bennett.

“Isn’t This a Lovely Day?,” as well as Bennett/Berlin, is available on Apple Music.

Here’s the number from Top Hat:

By Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: You’re All the World to Me

The song of the day for Saturday, August 17, 2024, is “You’re All the World to Me.”

About This Song

“You’re All the World to Me” was written by Burton Lane and Alan Jay Lerner for the 1951 MGM musical Royal Wedding, starring Fred Astaire. Astaire performed this song in one of the most famous shots in all of musical film: the dancing on the ceiling number.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “You’re All the World to Me” in July 1993 for his album Steppin’ Out, consisting of songs made famous by Fred Astaire. Bennett and Ralph Sharon wrote the arrangement.

“You’re All the World to Me,” as well as Steppin’ Out, is available on Apple Music.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t include the famous Dancing on the Ceiling number from Royal Wedding.

If you’re interested, this clip shows how this number was filmed.

You can read in more detail about how this was accomplished! It includes a film of how the director of Royal Wedding, Stanely Donan, recreated the number for Lionel Richie and the video of his 1986 album Dancing on the Ceiling.

By Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: By Myself

The song of the day for Thursday, July 4, 2024, is “By Myself.”

About This Song

“By Myself” was written by Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz for the 1937 musical Between the Devil, where it was introduced by Jack Buchanan. Another great Schwartz-Dietz song from Between the Devil was “I See Your Face Before Me.” This song was also used in the 1953 Fred Astaire film, The Band Wagon.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “By Myself” in July 1993 for his tribute album to Fred Astaire: Steppin’ Out. Tony Bennet and Ralph Sharon wrote the arrangement. Clayton Cameron was the very fine drummer for this recording.

“By Myself,” as well as Steppin’ Out, is available on Apple Music.

My favorite version of this song was a live recording of Judy Garland singing it on The Judy Garland Show in 1964. Her exit at the end of the song is not to be missed!