Harold Arlen Archives | Page 65 of 68 | The Year of Tony Bennett

February 13, 2013 By Suzanne 1 Comment

Song of the Day: That Old Black Magic

We celebrate Harold Arlen week today, February 13, 2013 with That Old Black Magic as the song of the day.

About That Old Black Magic

Written by Harold Arlen with lyrics by Johnny Mercer, That Old Black Magic was written in 1942 and used in the 1943 film Star Spangled Rhythm, where it was introduced by Vera Zorina and Johnnie Johnston.

This song has been very popular since it was first written, starting with the 1942 version by the Glenn Miller Orchestra. Other significant recordings are by Margaret Whiting, Ella Fitzgerald, and Frank Sinatra. Marilyn Monroe sang the song in the 1956 Bus Stop.

About This Version

Today’s version is from 1962, with the Dave Brubeck Quartet: Dave Brubeck (piano), Paul Desmond (alto sax), Eugene Wright (bass) and Joe Morello (drums).

That Old Black Magic
Tony Bennett · Rarities, Outtakes & Other Delights, Vol. 1 · Song · 2012

That Old Black Magic, as well as Rarities, Outtakes & Other Delights, Volume 1, is available from iTunes.

February 12, 2013 By Suzanne 1 Comment

Song of the Day: A Sleepin’ Bee

As part of Harold Arlen Week at The Year Of Tony Bennett, the song of the day for Tuesday, February 12, 2013 is A Sleepin’ Bee.

About A Sleepin’ Bee

In 1954, Harold Arlen collaborated with Truman Capote on the musical House of Flowers, based on the Capote novella of the same name. This production marked the Broadway debut of Diahann Carroll; the cast also included Pearl Bailey, Alvin Ailey, Geoffrey Holder, and Ray Walston.

Arlen wrote the music for the production; he and Capote wrote the lyrics. Out of the show came two songs that quickly became jazz and popular standards: Don’t Like Goodbyes and today’s song, A Sleepin’ Bee.

About This Version

Today’s version is from Bennett’s remarkable 1961 album Tony Sings For Two, with Tony accompanied only by pianist Ralph Sharon.

A Sleepin" Bee
Listen to A Sleepin" Bee on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1961

A Sleepin’ Bee, as well as the full album Tony Sings For Two, is available from iTunes.

February 11, 2013 By Suzanne 1 Comment

Song of the Day: One For My Baby (And One More For The Road)

The song of the day for Monday, February 11, 2013 is One For My Baby (And One More For The Road).

About One For My Baby

This song was written for the 1943 Fred Astaire film, The Sky’s The Limit by Harold Arlen with lyrics by Johnny Mercer and was introduced by Astaire.

Harold Arlen considered this song one of his top two compositions (the other being Last Night When We Were Young). It’s not the standard 32-bar structure, but instead run 48 bars; Arlen sometimes called it one of his “tapeworms” because it kind of wanders along. The Mercer lyrics are some of his best. No stranger to bars, Mercer is said to have written the lyrics on a napkin while sitting at the bar P.J. Clarke’s in New York.

About This Version

Tony Bennett has recorded this song several times in his career: as a single in 1956 and with John Mayer on Duets II in 2011. Two wonderful live performances have been recorded as well: his legendary 1962 Carnegie Hall Concert and the recently available 1964 Live At The Sahara: From This Moment On.

Today’s version is from his 1992 album, Perfectly Frank.

http://open.spotify.com/track/3dq31zC7KlxVhnFInGbQBd
One For My Baby, as well as the full Perfectly Frank album, is available from iTunes.

February 10, 2013 By Suzanne 2 Comments

Song of the Day: Let’s Fall In Love

To kick off Harold Arlen Week at the Year of Tony Bennett, the song of the day for Sunday, February 10, 2013 is Let’s Fall In Love.

About Let’s Fall In Love

Let’s Fall In Love was written in 1933 with lyricist Ted Koehler for the 1933 movie of the same name, starring Ann Sothern. Alec Wilder, in American Popular Song, says that “The title song, Let’s Fall In Love, was one of Arlen’s loveliest. And so is the gossamer verse.” I cannot disagree.

About This Version

Tony Bennett released his Harold Arlen album, Tony Bennett Sings A String of Harold Arlen, in 1960. The album features songs that cover the breadth of Arlen’s career for both Hollywood and Broadway. Let’s Fall In Love is quite lovely and Tony Bennett sings the “gossamer verse.” The fact that Bennett often sings the verse of the songs he performs is one of the many reasons I love him as a singer. The entire album was arranged and conducted by Glenn Osser.

http://open.spotify.com/track/7FUwZF4X4QOdoOTJFXczJu
Let’s Fall In Love, as well as the full Tony Bennett Sings a String of Harold Arlen album, is available from iTunes.

February 9, 2013 By Suzanne 1 Comment

Harold Arlen Week

The Year of Tony Bennett is proud to honor the great Harold Arlen all next week, beginning with the song of the day for Sunday, February 10, 2013.

Harold Arlen was born on February 15, 1905 in Buffalo, New York. For detailed information about Harold Arlen and his career in film and on Broadway, we refer you to the The Official Harold Arlen Website, a wonderful website run by Arlen’s son Samuel.

For the next seven days, we will be featuring songs written by Harold Arlen as sung by Tony Bennett. This page from The Official Harold Arlen Website lists all of Tony Bennett’s recordings of Harold Arlen songs.