The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: Country Girl

The song of the day for Sunday, October 12, 2014 is “Country Girl.”

About This Song

“Country Girl” was written by the Canadian-born composer, conductor, arranger and trumpet player Robert Farnon in 1966. Farnon composed both light classical and popular music, as well as film and television scores. He worked with Tony Bennett on several albums, including the wonderful 1968 Snowfall.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this version of “Country Girl” in 1966 for the album Tony Makes It Happen! It was arranged and conducted by Marion Evans. In his liner notes for Forty Years: The Artistry of Tony Bennett, in which he included “Country Girl,” Bennett wrote:

Don Costa, Marion Evans, Peter Matz and Quincy Jones all called Robert Farnon “the governor.” I didn’t know why until I had an opportunity to work with him. He also composed this song. When it comes to top quality music, he is at the very top of my list.

Country Girl

Listen to Country Girl on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1967


“Country Girl,” as well as the album Tony Makes It Happen!, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart

The song of the day for Monday, September 15, 2014 is “I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart.”

About This Song

Today’s song was composed by Duke Ellington in 1938 with lyrics by Irving Mills, Henry Nemo and John Redmond. “I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart” was a major hit for Duke Ellington, reaching #1 on the charts. In addition to his own recording that year, other recordings by Benny Goodman and Mildred Bailey were made that year and were extremely popular as well. In 1952 Ellington named this song as one of his eleven favorites.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart” in 1967 for the album Tony Makes It Happen! This song, as well as the entire album, was arranged and conducted by the great Marion Evans.

I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart

Listen to I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1967

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“I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart,” as well as the album Tony Makes It Happen!, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Old Devil Moon

The song of the day for Saturday, July 26, 2014 is “Old Devil Moon.”

About This Song

“Old Devil Moon” was written by Burton Lane (music) and Yip Harburg (lyrics) for the 1947 musical Finian’s Rainbow. It’s far and away the most popular song from the score, though “How Are Things in Gloccamora?” has also found a home in popular music.

The song has been widely recorded. Significant recordings include those by Chet Baker, Miles Davis, Frank Sinatra, Anita O’Day, Len Horne and trombone player J.J. Johnson.

About This Version

Sometimes your author gets hooked on one of Tony Bennett’s albums; when that happens, you’ll see a lot of songs from the same album in a relatively short period of time. Right now, that album is Tony Makes It Happen! Released in 1967, it’s a powerfully sung album with great arrangements of outstanding material. But how can you possibly go wrong with Marion Evans arranging your album? The album deserves a listen if you haven’t thought about it for a while.

http://open.spotify.com/track/4t3I5khZ6TCaoSYYW1cKms
“Old Devil Moon,” as well as the album Tony Makes It Happen!, is available from iTunes.

For our YouTube Saturday offering, here is Tony Bennett singing today’s song at his legendary 1994 MTV Unplugged television performance. He opened the show with “Old Devil Moon.”

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Song of the Day: Can’t Get Out Of This Mood

The song of the day for Tuesday, July 15, 2014 is “Can’t Get Out Of This Mood.”

About This Song

Today’s song was composed by Jimmy McHugh with lyrics by Frank Loesser for the 1942 wartime musical, Seven Day’s Leave. This torch song was introduced in the movie by Ginny Simms, with the Freddy Martin Orchestra.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this song for his 1967 album Tony Makes It Happen!. The album was arranged by the very talented Marion Evans and the orchestrations are excellent; this song is a great example of Evans’ work. The strings are just right and the trombone solo is fantastic. Oh, and Tony Bennett is as good as it gets on this song.

http://open.spotify.com/track/5GqhWBdSSvgPp82stuEh9Z
“Can’t Get Out Of This Mood,” as well Tony Makes It Happen!, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Out Of This World

The song of the day for Thursday, May 29, 2014 is “Out Of This World.”

About This Song

Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer wrote “Out Of This World” in 1945 for a movie of the same name. The song was sung in the movie by Bing Crosby, dubbing in for the voice of Eddie Bracken. The first recording of “Out Of This World” was in 1944 by Jo Stafford with Paul Weston and His Orchestra. Other recordings include those by Ella Fitzgerald, John Coltrane, Mel Tormé, Rosemary Clooney and, of course, Tony Bennett.

Alec Wilder wrote in American Popular Song that this song is “one of Arlen’s most direct and deliberately unrhythmic melodies, and unlike any of his other lyric ballads. …. It is a very strong song, with splendid lyric support in a John Mercer lyric.”

About This Version

I guess I’m on a Johnny Mercer roll … this is the third Mercer song in three day consecutive days and the second written by Harold Arlen. Today’s song is from Bennett’s 1967 album For Once In My Life. The song was arranged and conducted by the wonderfully talented Marion Evans and was recorded in January, 1967.

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