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The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

July 27, 2018 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: Cold, Cold Heart

The song of the day for Saturday, July 28, 2018 is “Cold, Cold Heart.”

About This Song

“Cold, Cold Heart” was written in 1951 by the great Hank Williams. It’s said, though probably apocryphally, that Williams had a bitter argument with his wife and later told the family’s governess that his wife had a cold, cold heart. The song was written soon after. If the story isn’t true, then it should be.

About This Version

Tony Bennett’s 1951 recording of “Cold, Cold Heart” was a blockbuster and is quite well-known. Today, I’m featuring a lesser-known recording from 1970: just Tony Bennett with pianist John Bunch. It’s an exquisite recording that was released with the Tony Bennett Complete Collection box set on Rarities, Outtakes & Other Delights, Vol. 1.

Cold, Cold Heart

Listen to Cold, Cold Heart on Spotify. Tony Bennett · Song · 2012.


“Cold, Cold Heart,” as well as other previously unreleased recordings on Rarities, Outtakes & Other Delights, Vol. 1, is available from iTunes.

About Today

I have a couple of videos of today’s song.

First up, this Google Doodle from Valentine’s Day a few years ago, features Bennett’s original 1951 recording.

Next up is a video with singer Tim McGraw, from the 2006 album Duets: An American Classic. As always, Gray Sargent’s guitar is just perfect.

Filed Under: Song of the Day Tagged With: Gray Sargent, Hank Williams, John Bunch, Tim McGraw, Tony Bennett

January 22, 2018 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: Wave

The song of the day for Tuesday, January 23, 2018 is “Wave.”

About This Song

“Wave” (also known as “Vou Te Contar” in Portuguese) is a bossa nova song written by Antônio Carlos Jobim. Recorded as an instrumental on his 1967 album of the same name, its English lyrics were written by Jobim himself later that year.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Wave” in 1970 for the album Tony Bennett’s “Something”. It features John Bunch on piano.

Wave

Listen to Wave on Spotify. Tony Bennett · Song · 1970.


“Wave,” as well as Tony Bennett’s “Something”, is available from iTunes.

Filed Under: Song of the Day Tagged With: Antonio Carlos Jobim, John Bunch, Tony Bennett, Tony Bennetts "Something"

April 19, 2016 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: Something To Live For

The song of the day for Tuesday, April 19, 2016 is “Something To Live For.”

About This Song

“Something To Live For” was written in 1939 by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn. It does have that unmistakable Strayhorn sound.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this version of “Something To Live For” in 1971. It features John Bunch on piano; the arrangement is by Robert Farnon. The recording is an outtake from Summer of 42; thankfully it was included on Volume 2 of Rarities, Outtakes and Other Delights in the 2011 Complete Collection box set. It is also available online from iTunes.

Something To Live For - 1971 version

Listen to Something To Live For - 1971 version on Spotify. Tony Bennett · Song · 2012.


“Something To Live For,” as well as Rarities, Outtakes and Other Delights, Vol. 2, is available from iTunes.

Filed Under: Song of the Day Tagged With: Billy Strayhorn, Duke Ellington, John Bunch, Robert Farnon

October 25, 2015 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

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

The song of the day for Sunday, October 25, 2015 is “One For My Baby (And One More For The Road).”

About This Song

“One For My Baby (And One More For The Road)” was written by Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer for the 1943 film The Sky’s The Limit, where it was introduced by Fred Astaire. Harold Arlen called this song one of his “tapeworms” as at 48 bars, it was longer than the standard 32 bar popular song. Alec Wilder, in American Popular Song, says that “the honors must go the lyric. … Just imagine having the acuity and courage to start a song, as Mercer does, with “It’s a quarter to three”!

About These Versions

As today is Sunday, we’re going to look several solo studio versions of today’s song.

Tony Bennett first recorded “One For My Baby (And One More For The Road)” in 1956, arranged by Ray Coniff. The next studio recording is from 1970 with John Bunch (in a lovely medley with “It Had To Be You”). We conclude with my favorite of these recordings today: the 1992 version on Perfectly Frank, arranged by Ralph Sharon. The differences between the 1956 and the 1992 versions is something to behold.

1956

One For My Baby (And One More For The Road)

Listen to One For My Baby (And One More For The Road) on Spotify. Tony Bennett · Song · 2011.


“One For My Baby (And One More For The Road),” as well as the singles collected on The Columbia Singles, Vol. 4, is available from iTunes.

1970

One For My Baby/It Had To Be You

Listen to One For My Baby/It Had To Be You on Spotify. Tony Bennett · Song · 2012.


“One For My Baby (And One More For The Road),” as well as all the songs collected on Outtakes, Rarities and Delights, Vol. 1, is available from iTunes.

1992

One for My Baby (And One More for the Road)

Listen to One for My Baby (And One More for the Road) on Spotify. Tony Bennett · Song · 1992.


“One For My Baby (And One More For The Road),” as well as Perfectly Frank, is available from iTunes.

Filed Under: Song of the Day Tagged With: Harold Arlen, John Bunch, Johnny Mercer, Perfectly Frank, Ralph Sharon, Ray Coniff

October 2, 2015 By Suzanne 1 Comment

Song of the Day: Harlem Butterfly

The song of the day for Friday, October 2, 2015 is “Harlem Butterfly.”

About This Song

Today’s song, “Harlem Butterfly,” was written in 1956 by Johnny Mercer, who wrote both music and lyrics. Although Mercer is not widely known for writing music, he was quite good at it; another of his attempts was quite successful: “I Wanna Be Around.”

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Harlem Butterfly” on October 1, 1971 and released it the following year on the album With Love. The album was arranged and conducted by Robert Farnon and features John Bunch on piano. The album was recorded in London at the Cine-Tele Studios.

Harlem Butterfly

Listen to Harlem Butterfly on Spotify. Tony Bennett · Song · 1972.


“Harlem Butterfly,” as well as With Love, is available from iTunes.

Filed Under: Song of the Day Tagged With: 1971, John Bunch, Johnny Mercer, Robert Farnon

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