The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: Days of Wine And Roses

The song of the day for Wednesday, October 23, 2013 is “Days of Wine And Roses.”

About This Song

This song was written for 1962 movie of the same name and was written by Henry Mancini with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. I remember hearing this song when it came out and thought it was very lovely. Then I saw the movie. Both Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick turned in extraordinary performances as the alcoholic couple. The song won the Academy Award for Best Original Song.

About This Version

Tony Bennett and Bill Evans recorded this song for The Tony Bennett / Bill Evans Album, released in 1975. Bennett also recorded this song for his 1965 The Movie Song Album.

http://open.spotify.com/track/23bcu1jfy1PNhIGAuRTec0
“Day of Wine and Roses,” as well as The Tony Bennett / Bill Evans Album is available from iTunes and Amazon.

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Song of the Day: Something’s Gotta Give

The song of the day for Friday, October 4, 2013 is “Something’s Gotta Give.”

About This Song

With both music and lyrics by Johnny Mercer, “Something’s Gotta Give” was written for the 1955 film Daddy Long Legs, where it was introduced by Fred Astaire. The lyrics are pure Mercer:

When an irresistible force such as you
Meets an old immovable object like me
You can bet just as sure as you live
Somethin’s gotta give

The song is full of those paradoxes and it’s a real treat.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this song in 1955; it was arranged by Sid Feller. However, the recording was not released until 2011 on Rarities, Outtakes & Other Delights, Volume 1, with the Tony Bennett Complete Collection. There are two volumes and they are both full of delights, from Tony’s first-ever recording of “St. James Infirmary” with the 314th Army Special Services Band in Germany to some great jazz sets with Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Elvin Jones and Stan Getz to a few early live performances by Mr. Bennett in a smoky nightclub.
http://open.spotify.com/track/6pew3Sff2WTusydMb9epXi
“Something’s Gotta Give,” as well as all of the songs on Rarities, Outtakes & Other Delights, Volume 1, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: That Old Black Magic

The song of the day for Wednesday, October 3, 2013 is “That Old Black Magic.”

About This Song

“That Old Black Magic” was written in 1942 by Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer for the 1942 movie Star Spangled Rhythm. The first recording was by Glen Miller (with “A Pink Cocktail For a Blue Lady” on the flip side), which was followed with recordings by many great artists, including Margaret Whiting, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Judy Garland and even Johnny Mercer. Marilyn Monroe sang the song in the film version of Bus Stop in 1956.

About This Version

Today’s version is from the recently released Bennett & Brubeck: The White House Sessions, Live 1962. The tape from this concert had been lost in the vaults at Columbia for years, though “That Old Black Magic” had been released in 1971 on Dave Brubeck Summit Sessions. The tape was located in the classical music section at Sony last December and was released as an album in May, 2013 and was number one on the jazz charts for several months; even today it’s still number four for jazz vocals.

This song was a short improv session with Tony Bennett, Dave Brubeck, Eugene Wright and Joe Morello. The four songs they did that August night in 1962 are really glorious and bear for repeated listening.

It’s a Harold Arlen kind of week.

http://open.spotify.com/track/0NTxPntOPk44Boyl985eAV
“That Old Black Magic,” as well as Bennett & Brubeck: The White House Sessions, Live 1962, is available from iTunes and amazon.com.

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Song of the Day: Out Of This World

The song of the day for Sunday, September 15, 2013 is “Out Of This World.”

About This Song

If there is anything better than a Harold Arlen song, it’s a Harold Arlen song with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. And so, today’s song of the day is Arlen’s and Mercer’s 1944 song “Out Of This World,” written for the film of the same name. The film starred actor Eddie Bracken, but the song was sung by Bing Crosby.

About This Version

Tony Bennett has recorded “Out Of This World” twice: once in 1960 for the album Alone Together (arranged by Frank DeVol) and again in 1967 for the album For Once In My Life, arranged by Marion Evans. Both versions have their strong points, but for today I chose the 1967 version. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. I only wish the hardest decisions I had to make involved making me choose between two superb versions of the same wonderful song by two great songwriters sung by Tony Bennett.

http://open.spotify.com/track/1lbNdANp7StpkibXrAMjbi
“Out Of This World,” as well as the album For Once In My Life, is available from iTunes and Amazon.com.

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Song of the Day: One For My Baby

The song of the day for Friday, August 3, 2013 is “One For My Baby.”

About This Song

“One For My Baby” is at the top of any list of favorite Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer songs; it certainly is at the top of mine. It was written for the 1943 film The Sky’s The Limit, starring Fred Astaire who introduced the song.

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:

In One For My Baby, marvelous as is the musical setting, I believe the honor must go to the lyric, I’ve lived this story too many times, in too many towns, with too many long, long roads outside those doors, not to be hooked. Just imagine having the acuity and courage to start a song, as Mercer does, with “It’s a quarter to three”!

About This Version

As Tony Bennett will be performing live this August evening at the Hollywood Bowl (and may very likely sing this particular song), we chose this version, recorded live on another warm August evening in 1962. Today’s version is from the recently released Bennett/Brubeck: The White House Sessions, Live 1962, with the Ralph Sharon Trio, including Sharon on piano, Hal Gaylord on bass and Billy Exiner on drums.

http://open.spotify.com/track/4OEbmpeKICcKyNapON0vas
“One For My Baby,” as well as the entire Bennett/Brubeck The White House Sessions Live 1962, is available from iTunes.