The song of the day for Saturday, May 10, 2014 is “I Wanna Be Around.”

About This Song

“I Wanna Be Around” was written by Johnny Mercer and Sadie Vimmerstedt. Ms. Vimmerstedt, who was a big fan of Johnny Mercer, came up one day with the line “I wanna be around, to pick up the pieces, when somebody breaks your heart.” She thought it sounded like a Johnny Mercer lyric, so she wrote a letter addressed to Johnny Mercer, Songwriter, Los Angeles, CA. The letter reached Mercer who agreed with her, to the point that he decided to not only finish the lyric but to write the music as well. Mercer set up a 50-50 split of the royalties with Ms. Vimmerstedt, which made her a quite well-to-do woman. And together, they gave us a really great song. Even though Aretha Franklin recorded the song first, in 1962, Tony Bennett’s 1963 version is by far the most famous and well-regarded version ever recorded.

About This Version

Bennett recorded “I Wanna Be Around” in October 1962 and released it in 1963 on his album of the same name. This album is treasure: it also has “The Good Life” and many other excellent songs.

http://open.spotify.com/track/1smChL3Aq1U9DZA83LuDtp
“I Wanna Be Around,” as well as the album I Wanna Be Around, is available from iTunes.

Today is not only another YouTube Saturday, but is also the birthday of Bono, who was born on May 10, 1960. To help celebrate his birthday, we’re happy to present this video of Tony and Bono recording “I Wanna Be Around” from the album Duets: An American Classic.