The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: Now It Can Be Told

The song of the day for Thursday, May 20, 2021, is “Now It Can Be Told.”

About This Song

“Now It Can Be Told” was written by Irving Berlin for the 1938 film Alexander’s Ragtime Band, where it was introduced by Don Ameche and Alice Faye. It was nominated for an Academy Award for best song (it lost to “Thanks For the Memory”), though the score for the film won the Academy Award. In addition to Tony Bennett’s recording, it has been recorded by Bing Crosby, The Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, The Ray Noble Orchestra with Frankie Laine, and Teddy Wilson.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Now It Can Be Told” in 1987 for his album Bennett/Berlin. Bennett arranged the song for this recording.

Now It Can Be Told

Listen to Now It Can Be Told on Spotify. Tony Bennett · Song · 1987.

“Now It Can Be Told,” as well as Bennett/Berlin, is available from Apple Music.

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Song of the Day: Cheek To Cheek

The song of the day for Tuesday, May 11, 2021, is “Cheek To Cheek.”

About Today

Israel Berlin, later known as Irving Berlin, was born in Tolochin, Russian Empire on May 11, 1888. His family emigrated to the United States when he was only five years old. He is widely considered on the great songwriters in American history, with his tremendous contributions to both film and stage productions. Berlin lived to be 101 years old, dying on September 22, 1989.

About This Song

“Cheek To Cheek” was written by Irving Berlin for the 1935 film Top Hat, starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, where it was introduced (beautifully) by Fred Astaire. Though the song was nominated for an Academy Award (it lost to “Lullaby Of Broadway”), it became a hit in 1935 and has remained popular to this day. Significant recordings include those by Harry James, Glenn Miller, Roy Eldridge, Bing Crosby and many, many more. Fans of the Tom Hanks’ movie The Green Mile might remember this song, as Top Hat is viewed in the prison. For many, it is one of the very first songs that comes to mind when one thinks of Fred Astaire and the 1930s Hollywood musical.

About This Version

Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga recorded “Cheek To Cheek” for their 2014 album Cheek To Cheek. The wonderful Marion Evans wrote the arrangement.

Cheek To Cheek

Listen to Cheek To Cheek on Spotify. Tony Bennett · Song · 2014.

“Cheek To Cheek,” as well as the album Cheek To Cheek, is available from Apple Music.

About Irving Berlin’s Piano

Berlin was a self-taught pianist who preferred to play on the black keys and played only in F#. He composed on a transposing upright piano, his first one was made in 1909. In 1940, another was made for him by Weser Brothers in New York. He only needed to adjust the transposing mechanism to change the key.The 1940 piano resides in the Smithsonian Museum. This video shows Berlin demonstrating the transposing feature to Dinah Shore and Tony Martin.

Irving Berlin- on television (very RARE clip)

In one of his RARE few television appearances, Irving Berlin explains the workings of his "special" piano to Dinah Shore and Tony Martin, and plays an early ...

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

The song of the day for Sunday, April 4, 2021, is “Isn’t This a Lovely Day.”

About This Song

“Isn’t This a Lovely Day” was written by Irving Berlin 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 “Isn’t This a Lovely Day” in 1987 for his album Bennett/Berlin. Backing Bennett is the Ralph Sharon Trio, featuring Sharon on piano, Paul Langosch on bass, and Joe LaBarbera on drums.

Isn"t This a Lovely Day

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

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

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Song of the Day: I Used To Be Color Blind

The song of the day for Friday, January 15, 2021, is “I Used To Be Color Blind.”

About This Song

Irving Berlin wrote “I Used To Be Color Blind” for the 1938 film Carefree, where it was introduced by Fred Astaire. Tony Bennett and Lee Musiker have a nice little exchange in the documentary film The Zen of Bennett about this song after Bennett discovers that the shoeshine person mistakenly shined his black shoes with brown polish.

About This Version

As I do every Thursday afternoon, I was listening to John Pizzarelli’s online show It’s 5 O’Clock Somewhere: A Musical Social From A Distance. One of the songs he played this week was “I Used To Be Color Blind” and he mentioned that he loved Tony’s recording of the song. He also said that his dad, Bucky Pizzarelli, played on the recording.

Tony Bennett recorded “I Used To Be Color Blind” in 1975 for the album Tony Bennett Sings “Life Is Beautiful”, released on Bennett’s Improv label. Torrie Zito wrote the arrangement.

I Used To Be Color Blind

Listen to I Used To Be Color Blind on Spotify. Tony Bennett · Song · 2004.

“I Used To Be Color Blind,” as well as The Complete Improv Recordings, is available from Apple Music.”

You can catch It’s 5 O’Clock Somewhere: A Musical Social From A Distance on Facebook on the John Pizzarelli page or on Instagram- JohnPizzarelliOfficial. It starts every Thursday at 6:00 ET and lasts about an hour. His wife Jessica Molaskey joins every week and she sings several songs each week. Each Monday, John posts about the upcoming show and asks for your request.

You can also catch John and Jessica on Radio Deluxe, which is one of the best shows ever for jazz, cabaret, and show tunes. They almost always feature at least one Tony Bennett recording. You can find more information on radiodeluxe.com with information on how to listen. This show runs for about two hours. Both of these are great fun and you’ll learn a lot about the songs and the people who sang them.

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Song of the Day: White Christmas

On the 4th day of a Tony Bennett Christmas, the song of the day for Thursday, December 17, 2020, is “White Christmas.”

About This Song

Irving Berlin wrote “White Christmas” in 1940. It is one of America’s most beloved Christmas songs. In the not-often heard verse of the song, we hear that “the sun is shining, the grass is green, the orange and palm trees sway, there’s never been such a day in Beverly Hills, L.A. But it’s December the 24 …” And indeed, Irving Berlin was in Los Angeles when he wrote “White Christmas,” expressing that longing for a traditional back-home Christmas. Bing Crosby recorded the song in 1942 and completely dominated the music charts for weeks. Crosby’s single of “White Christmas” is the biggest-selling single record of all time, worldwide, at over 100-million copies.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this version of “White Christmas” in 1987 for his album Bennett/Berlin. The recording features Dexter Gordon on tenor sax.

White Christmas - 1987 Version

Listen to White Christmas - 1987 Version on Spotify. Tony Bennett · Song · 1987.

“White Christmas,” as well as Bennett/Berlin, is available from Apple Music.

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