The song of the day for Saturday, January 5, 2019, is “The Way You Look Tonight.”

About This Song

“The Way You Look Tonight” was written in 1936 by Jerome Kern and Dorothy Fields. The song was introduced by Fred Astaire in the 1936 film Swing Time; the song won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for the year. Dorothy Fields remarked “The first time Jerry played that melody for me I went out and started to cry. The release absolutely killed me. I couldn’t stop, it was so beautiful.” Dorothy Fields was the first woman to win an Oscar for songwriting. It’s a magnificent love song that has found a strong position as a jazz standard, with recordings by Bing Crosby, Billie Holiday, Mel Tormé, and Frank Sinatra.

About This Version

Tony Bennett has recorded “The Way You Look Tonight” several times. Today, I chose to feature his first recording, arranged by Frank DeVol, for the album Long Ago and Far Way, released in 1958.

The Way You Look Tonight – Remastered

The Way You Look Tonight – Remastered, a song by Tony Bennett on Spotify

“The Way Look Tonight,” as well as Long Ago and Far Away, is available from iTunes.

About Today

Our video today is quite special. On December 31, 2008, Tony appeared on a television special hosted by Elvis Costello, who asked him to sing a Jerome Kern. Tony chose this song and his surprise accompanist was Bill Charlap … an early preview of great things to come.

Tony Bennett: “The Way You Look Tonight”

Tony Bennett sings “The Way You Look Tonight” accompanied by Bill Charlap on Elvis Costello’s Spectacle, 1231/ 08