The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: I’ve Got Your Number

The song of the day for Sunday, August 21, 2016 is “I’ve Got Your Number.”

About This Song

“I’ve Got Your Number” is from the 1962 Broadway musical Little Me, the second musical that Cy Coleman and Carolyn Leigh wrote (the first being Wildcat, written for Lucille Ball). Little Me starred Sid Caesar and Virginia Martin, both of whom introduced “I’ve Got Your Number.”

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “I’ve Got Your Number” in 1962 for the album I Wanna Be Around, released in 1963. The arrangement is by Marty Manning. “I’ve Got Your Number” is just one of the many Broadway-bound songs that Bennett recorded, starting with “Stranger in Paradise.”

I"ve Got Your Number

Listen to I"ve Got Your Number on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1963


“I’ve Got Your Number,” as well as I Wanna Be Around, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: I Wanna Be Around

On the sixth day of the Tony Bennett 90th Birthday Bash, August 4, 2016, he song of the day is “I Wanna Be Around.”

About This Song

The story of “I Wanna Be Around” is legendary in the music business. Sadie Vimmerstedt, who lived in Youngstown, Ohio, was a big fan of Johnny Mercer’s music. She wrote the opening line ‘I want to be around to pick up the pieces, when somebody breaks yours heart’ and felt it sounded like a Johnny Mercer song. She mailed a letter to ‘Johnny Mercer, Songwriter, New York.’ The post office forwarded the letter to ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers), who got the letter to Mercer. Mercer wrote the melody himself and completed the lyrics for “I Wanna Be Around” in 1959 and asked Tony Bennett to record it, which he did in 1962. Mercer gave 50% of the profits to Ms. Vimmerstedt, which made her a wealthy woman and enabled her to retire and travel the world. It is one of the great songs in the American Songbook.

About This Version

Today’s version is the original one from 1962 and was released on the album I Wanna Be Around in 1963. The arrangement is by Marty Manning.

I Wanna Be Around...

Listen to I Wanna Be Around... on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1963


“I Wanna Be Around,” as well as the album I Wanna Be Around, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: I Love You

The song of the day for Sunday, June 12, 2016 is “I Love You.”

About This Song

Cole Porter wrote “I Love You” in 1944 for the movie Mexican Hayride, which not only featured the score by Cole Porter, but the book by Herbert Fields and Dorothy Fields, his sister, a noted lyricist.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “I Love You” in 1962 for On The Glory Road, with an arrangement by Marty Manning. The album was not released as planned, but was included in Bennett’s 2011 Complete Collection box set.

I Love You

Listen to I Love You on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1962


“I Love You,” as well as On The Glory Road, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: The Good Life

The song of the day for Friday, January 29, 2015 is “The Good Life.”

About This Song

Today’s song, “The Good Life,” was written in 1962 by Sacha Distel, with English lyrics by Jack Reardon. Originally titled “La Belle Vie,” “The Good Life” was featured in the movie Seven Capital Sins. Tony Bennett is the singer most widely identified with “The Good Life;” other good recordings include those by Betty Carter, Carmen McRae and Stephane Grappelli. It has been said that Distel wrote this song about Bridgette Bardot, who refused Distel’s marriage proposal.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “The Good Life” in 1962 for his album I Wanna Be Around. The arrangement is by Marty Manning.

The Good Life

Listen to The Good Life on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1963


“The Good Life,” as well as , is available from iTunes.

About Today

The composer of today’s song, Sacha Distel, was born eighty-two years ago today, on January 29, 1933 in Paris. His uncle was a jazz promoter in Paris and young Sacha grew up listening to and falling in love with jazz. In addition to his gifts as a composer, he was a renowned jazz guitarist and singer who recorded many fine albums. Distel died in 2004 at the age of seventy-one.

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Song of the Day: Once Upon A Time

The song of the day for is “Once Upon A Time.”

About This Song

Today’s song, “Once Upon A Time,” was written in 1962 by Charles Strouse (music) and Lee Adams (lyrics) for the Ray Bolger musical All American, where it was introduced by Bolger and Eileen Herlie. While the musical was not a major smash hit, the song is quite lovely. In addition to Tony Bennett’s fine recording, it was also recorded by Frank Sinatra, Andy Williams, Howard Keel, Bobby Darrin and Mandy Patinkin.

About This Version

I fell in love with this song the year it was written, when I was a somewhat romantic pre-teen; my parents had this album and I think I pretty much wore it wore it out listening to the first two songs on Side 1: “I Left My Heart In San Francisco” and “Once Upon A Time.”

Tony Bennett recorded “Once Upon A Time” in January 1962 at the same session as “I Left My Heart In San Francisco”; both were arranged by Marty Manning. They were also released together on a single, with “Once Upon A Time” on the A-side and “I Left My Heart In San Francisco” on the B-side. I think we all know how that turned out. But, that said, both songs are wonderful and I’m happy to do my part to get even just one person to listen to “Once Upon A Time.”

Once Upon a Time

Tony Bennett · I Left My Heart In San Francisco · Song · 1962


“Once Upon A Time,” as well as I Left My Heart In San Francisco, is available from iTunes.

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