The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

By Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: Sing You Sinners

The song of the day for Wednesday, June 3, 2015 is “Sing You Sinners.”

About This Song

“Sing You Sinners” was written by W. Franke Harling (music) and Sam Coslow (lyrics) for the 1930 film Honey, starring Lillian Roth. The song was an early hit in 1950 for Tony Bennett. He sings the song regularly in concerts today.

About This Version

Tony Bennett has recorded this song several times: in 1950 and 1955 as a single; live in 1962 and 1964; and as duet with John Legend in 2006. Today I’ve chosen his 1950 version, which was recorded on July 20, 1950 at his second session with Columbia Records (the first was on April 17). It was arranged by Marty Manning and the arrangement is quite effective and swings nicely. One reason I like this recording is that it feels to me like he relaxed in the studio and just sang all out.

About Today

I am writing today from my home office … so far, only the necessities unpacked: keyboard, computer and the booklet from the The Complete Collection box set. It was a smooth move!

Sing You Sinners

Listen to Sing You Sinners on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 2011


“Sing You Sinners,” as well as all of the songs collected on The Columbia Singles, Vol. 1, is available from iTunes.

By Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: I’ve Got Your Number

The song of the day for Sunday, December 28, 2014 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 his album I Wanna Be Around. This song was arranged by Marty Manning.

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.

By Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: Sing You Sinners

The song of the day for Sunday, July 20, 2014 is “Sing You Sinners.”

About This Song

“Sing You Sinners” was written for the 1930 movie Honey by W. Franke Harling (music) and Sam Coslow (lyrics).

About This Version

Sixty-four years ago today, Tony Bennett was in the studio with arranger and conductor Marty Manning to record two songs: “Just Say I Love Her” and “Sing You Sinners.” It was his third recording session for Columbia Records, with whom he had just signed a contract. I absolutely love this version of “Sing You Sinners” and feel that it really shows the world the kind of singer Bennett was going to be.

You can read  about the July 20, 2014 session at our sister site, The Interactive Tony Bennett Discography (aka this author’s labor of love). The content for the first phase is almost completed. I still have some programming to do to build the search capability, but you can still easily find what you’re interested in there.

http://open.spotify.com/track/2D8HFZ4W9TMRYccuOX91zh
“Sing You Sinners,” as well as all the singles on The Columbia Singles, Vol. 1, is available from iTunes.

By 1 Comment

Song of the Day: The Boulevard Of Broken Dreams

As we continue with The Tony Bennett 1950s Hit Parade, the song of the day for Monday, January 7, 2012 is The Boulevard of Broken Dreams.

About The Boulevard of Broken Dreams

The Boulevard of Broken Dreams was written in 1933 by Harry Warren, with lyrics by Al Dubin. The song was written with for the 1934 film, Moulin Rouge, and the song, as well as the film, was set in Paris. It was first sung in the film by Constance Bennett; the first recording was made by Deane Janis with Hal Kemp’s orchestra in 1933. Significant recordings include those by Bing Crosby and an instrumental version by Art Tatum.

About This Version

Like the version of Fascinatin’ Rhythm we featured a few weeks ago, The Boulevard of Broken Dreams was first recorded as a demonstration disc by Leslie Records in 1949. Unfortunately, no recordings of this demo disc still exist.

This recording is the song that got Tony Bennett his contract with Columbia in 1950. Mitch Miller had heard the recording and offered a contract to Mr. Bennett, sight unseen.

This version was recorded in April, 1950 and was released in May of the same year. It was arranged and conducted by Marty Manning and produced by Mitch Miller.

The Boulevard of Broken Dreams

Listen to The Boulevard of Broken Dreams on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 2011

The Boulevard of Broken Dreams, as well as the full Columbia Singles: Volume 1, is available from iTunes.

By 2 Comments

Song of the Day: Someone To Love

The song of the day for Thursday, January 3, 2012 is Someone To Love.

tony-bennett-4

About Someone To Love

Someone To Love was written by song writer and arranger Bobby Warren in 1943.

About This Version

This version is from Tony Bennett’s 1963 album I Wanna Be Around. The album is best known for the first recordings of two of Mr. Bennett’s most popular songs: The Good Life and I Wanna Be Around. There are many other fine songs on the album, though, including this one. Someone To Love was arranged and conducted by Marty Manning and produced by Ernie Altschuler.

Someone To Love

Listen to Someone To Love on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1963

Someone To Love, as well as the full I Wanna Be Around album, is available from iTunes.