The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: The Man That Got Away

The song of the day for Saturday, January 25, 2014 is “The Man That Got Away.”

About This Song

“The Man That Got Away” was written by Harold Arlen and Ira Gershwin for Judy Garland for the 1954 version of A Star Is Born, with James Mason. Her performance of the song is legendary in film history, with 27 takes in three days, three separate sessions, and two different directors. The filmed scene is brilliant and made the song a huge hit for Garland, who sang it in most of her concerts.

About This Version

My friends, especially my co-blogger, know how much I love this song. Tony recorded this song with Ralph Sharon for their 1961 album Tony Sings For Two. I’ve always found it amazing that Tony and Ralph just headed into the studio with a couple of briefcases full of sheet music and, in a single session, chose, arranged and recorded sixteen tracks, twelve of which appear on this album. An album that is not only one of his best albums, but is completely sublime — now and forever.

http://open.spotify.com/track/2rmnQNHuDsDExyiWLam3SC
“The Man That Got Away,” as well as the album Tony Sings For Two, is available from iTunes.

I spent the afternoon at the office listening to the Judy Garland Carnegie Hall concert on my iPod. To acknowledge not only Judy, but her wonderful performance of this song, our video for YouTube Saturday is Judy Garland from the 1954 A Star Is Born. And, a former professional lighting designer, it’s one of the most beautifully lit scenes I’ve seen in a film. In my humble opinion.

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Song of the Day: Come Rain Or Come Shine

The song of the day for Sunday, January 19, 2014 is “Come Rain Or Come Shine.”

About This Song

“Come Rain Or Come Shine” was written by Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer for their 1946 musical St. Louis Woman. The song was introduced by Ruby Hill and Harold Nicholas (his brother Fayard was also cast in the production). While the Arlen/Mercer score was widely praised, the production had a number of problems, ranging from a poor book to a rather depressing and serious story. The leading role had been originally intended for Lena Horne, but after the NAACP criticized the musical, she turned down the role. Other songs from St. Louis Woman include “Any Place I Hand My Hat Is Home” and “I Had Myself a True Love.”

About This Version

The Year of Tony Bennett crew (all two of us) sat down this evening and viewed the Johnny Mercer documentary The Dream’s On Me, produced by Clint Eastwood. We enjoyed it immensely — how can you not love the lyrics of Johnny Mercer, especially when paired with the music of Harold Arlen? I knew we had to feature a Johnny Mercer song; I also wanted to explore more the score of the musical they wrote together, St. Louis Woman.

Tony Bennett recorded this song in 1960 for the album Tony Bennett Sings a String of Harold Arlen. All of the songs on the album were arranged and conducted by Glenn Osser.

http://open.spotify.com/track/2FIt3D8ZMrnPx3vIoGpWZJ
“Come Rain Or Come Shine,” as well as Tony Bennett Sings a String of Harold Arlen, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: One For My Baby/It Had To Be You

The song of the day for Wednesday, January 15, 2013 is a medley of “One For My Baby” and “It Had To Be You.”

About These Songs

“One For My Baby” was written by Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer for the 1943 film The Sky’s The Limit; the song was, of course, introduced by the great Fred Astaire.

“It Had To Be You” was written in 1924 by Isham Jones, with lyrics by Gus Kahn and has been performed and recorded ever since by singers from Cliff Edwards and Ruth Etting to Frank Sinatra and Billie Holiday. This song is 90 years old and sounds as fresh, current and meaningful as it ever did. Now that’s a great song.

About This Version

Earlier this week, I picked another song from the Rarities, Outtakes and Other Delights, Vol. 1 disc for the song of the day. Following my usual custom, I listened to the remaining songs on the disc while writing the song of the day topic, choosing a quote of the day and doing other basic blog duties. When I heard this medley, I knew I had to feature it soon as the song of the day. In reality, the song is “I Had To Be You” with “One For My Baby” at the beginning and the end.

This medley was recorded in 1970 and features John Bunch at the piano. I love listening to Tony Bennett singing a well-written ballad like this: sweet and soft, with impeccable phrasing and attention to the lyric. It’s a beautiful arrangement and I hope you like it as much as I do.

http://open.spotify.com/track/7I6ab6OcXBwR2k3m0QYdEv
The medley of “One For My Baby” and “It Had To Be You,” as well as all of the cuts on Rarities, Outtakes and Other Delights, Vol. 1, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Blues in the Night

The song of the day for Tuesday, January 14, 2014 is “Blues in the Night.”

About This Song

Today’s song, “Blues in the Night,” was written by Arlen and Johnny Mercer for the 1941 film of the same name. I actually managed to catch this movie on Turner Classic Movies a few months ago; it’s not the world’s greatest film by any means, but the score was incredible, thanks mainly to this wonderful song. Harold Arlen wrote a perfect blues song and Mercer’s lyrics are legendary. The famous first lines of the lyric “My mama done tole me, when I was in knee pants” was just a scribble in a margin on one of the pages of Mercer’s notes while he was working on the lyric. Arlen saw this scribble and suggested that Mercer start with those lines. He said it was the few times he ever suggested any words to Mercer.

About This Version

Today’s song is from Tony Bennett’s third album The Beat of My Heart, released in 1957. In that same year, Tony Bennett auditioned an English jazz pianist named Ralph Sharon and hired him immediately. Sharon encouraged Bennett to continue to explore his interest and love of performing jazz. Tony Bennett came up with the idea of spotlighting rhythm songs and inviting the world’s great percussionists to join him. Sharon and Bennett worked out the songs and arc of the album while they were on the road. Upon returning to New York, the recordings began, with percussionists including Jo Jones, Chico Hamilton, Art Blakey, Candido, Sabu and Bennett’s regular drummer, Billy Exiner. With great arrangements by Sharon and great performances from all the artists, The Beat of My Heart, along with his first album Cloud 7, secured Tony Bennett’s reputation as a jazz singer. The album was not only a success with the listening public, but was all very well received by the jazz critics.

“Blues in the Night” features the great Jo Jones on drums.

http://open.spotify.com/track/06tHPbvXdBqsVLRKnDb7Sj
“Blues in the Night,” as well as The Beat of My Heart, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Last Night When We Were Young

The song of the day for Wednesday, January 8, 2014 is “Last Night When We Were Young.”

About This Song

“Last Night When We Were Young” was written in 1935 by Harold Arlen with lyrics by E.Y. “Yip” Harburg. Arlen considered this song to be one of his favorite songs of those he wrote. In American Popular Song, Alec Wilder calls it a “most remarkable and beautiful song … (that) goes far beyond the boundaries of popular music.” Yip Harburg has said that he doesn’t know exactly where the title came from but that “the juxtaposition of those two phrases is almost a whole world of philosophy.” All in all, it’s a very beautiful and introspective song that is much beloved by singers. Frank Sinatra included on his wonderful album In The Wee Small Hours. It has also been recorded by Judy Garland, Mel Tormé, Carmen McRae and, of course, Tony Bennett.

About This Version

Tony Bennett first recorded “Last Night When We Were Young” in 1959 for his album To My Wonderful One. Today’s version, however, is from his 1992 album Perfectly Frank, which consists of songs associated with Frank Sinatra. And, even though Bennett pays tribute to Sinatra in choosing these songs, this is in no way a cover album. It is completely Tony Bennett, at the very top of his form, singing some the greatest songs from the American Songbook, not the least of which is “Last Night When We Were Young.”

http://open.spotify.com/track/1qgQmCZ3fUkG2dNSYI6OvN
“When We Were Young Last Night,” as well as the album Perfectly Frank, is available from iTunes.

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