The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: My Funny Valentine

The song of the day for Sunday, June 223, 2024, is “My Funny Valentine.”

About This Song

“My Funny Valentine” was written by Richard Rodgers and Larry Hart for the 1937 Broadway musical Babes in Arms, where it was introduced by Mitzi Green. This ballad is one of the most-loved songs in the American songbook and has been sung by most jazz and cabaret artists. In addition to Tony Bennett’s excellent recordings of this song, others include those by Chet Baker, Frank Sinatra, and Miles Davis.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “My Funny Valentine” on October 28, 1959, for the album Tony Sings For Two, released in 1961.

Bennett shared his thoughts about Tony Sings For Two, from his autobiography The Good Life:

I always wanted to be unpredictable, and so for my next project, I decided to go in the opposite direction from the big orchestral albums I’d been doing lately and cut an intimate piano-vocal album with Ralph Sharon. We booked time at the studio and pored through music books, trying one tune after another. The arrangements were spontaneous, and we finished each song in one or two takes. In one afternoon we laid down sixteen tunes—which must be some kind of record—twelve of which made it onto the album, which became 1961’s Tony Sings For Two. Mitch Miller showed up at the start of these sessions, furious that I was really going through with it. When he saw that there was no dissuading me, he turned to Frank Laico and said, “I’m leaving. I can’t support this.” Tony Sings For Two turned out to be one of my finest records ever.

“My Funny Valentine,” as well as Tony Sings For Two, is available on Apple Music.

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Song of the Day: Bewitched

The song of the day for Sunday, September 16, 2023, is “Bewitched.”

About Today

The Year of Tony Bennett is proud to honor one of Tony Bennett’s greatest collaborators: Ralph Sharon, who was born in London on September 17, 1925. He served as Bennett’s pianist, musical director, and arranger for many years, starting in 1958.

About This Song

“Bewitched” (also known by its full name “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered”) was written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart for the the 1940 musical Pal Joey, where it was introduced by Vivienne Segal. Notable recordings are by Benny Goodman, Mel Tormé, Oscar Peterson, Ella Fitzgerald, and Frank Sinatra. Alec Wilder admired the lyric and the verse, but found the song “notey.” In spite of being notey, it’s a cornerstone of the American Songbook.

About This Version

Tony Bennett and Ralph Sharon recorded “Bewitched” on October 28, 1959. They wanted to an album of songs from the Great American Songbook, without any other accompaniment, other than Sharon. Bennett’s producer, Mitch Miller, showed up and said to the Frank Laico, who recorded the session, “I’m leaving. I can’t support this.”

The resulting album, Tony Sings For Two, was released in 1961.

“Bewitched,” as well as Tony Sings For Two, is available on Apple Music.

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Album of the Week: Tony Sings For Two

The album of the week starting on February 20, 2022, is Tony Sings For Two.

Tony Sings For Two

On October 28, 1959, Tony Bennett and Ralph Sharon entered the CBS 30th Street Studio with a briefcase full of sheet music to record an album with no orchestra, just Bennett and Sharon on piano. They looked through the music and tried different tunes. Once a song was selected, they recorded it in one or two takes; the arrangements were spontaneous. In one afternoon, they recorded 16 songs, 12 of which made it onto the album; a 13th song was added to the 1995 CD re-release. Mitch Miller showed up at the start of these sessions, furious that they were really going through with it. When he saw that there was no dissuading Bennett, he turned to Frank Laico and said, “I’m leaving. I can’t support this.” The resulting album, Tony Sings For Two was released until early 1961. The album was a masterpiece and is one of Bennett’s finest albums.

Album Facts

Release Date February 6, 1961
Label Columbia
Producer Mitch Miller
Vocals Tony Bennett
Piano Ralph Sharon
Recording Date October 28, 1959
Recording Engineer Frank Laico

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Album of the Week: Tony Bennett Sings a String of Harold Arlen

The album of the week starting on February 12, 2022, is Tony Bennett Sings a String of Harold Arlen.

Tony Bennett Sings a String of Harold Arlen was Tony Bennett’s first album dedicated to a composer and that composer was one of his favorites: Harold Arlen. The orchestral arrangements are quite beautiful. Bennett remembers this album in The Good Life:

Later on that year I did my first, and for many years my only, songbook album, A String of Harold Arlen. The son of a cantor, Harold grew up in Buffalo. He became the musical director of the Cotton Club and originally wrote many jazz compositions. But his pop songs were dramatic and right up my alley. Arlen was known for the jazzy quality of his melodies, but Mitch thought it would be novel to give his songs a lush, symphonic treatment. He brought in Glenn Osser, a veteran record and show orchestrator, and his charts were just right. I felt free singing to Glenn’s arrangements. We used a big orchestra of mainly classical players, and they really enjoyed the recording session. That’s the only album I ever made where the musicians actually applauded after each take.

 

Album Facts

Release Date March 30, 1961
Label Columbia
Producer Mitch Miller
Vocals Tony Bennett
Arrangements Glenn Osser

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Album of the Week: The Beat of My Heart

The album of the week starting on January 16, 2022, is The Beat of My Heart.

The Beat of My Heart was conceived and planned by Tony Bennett and his new musical director, Ralph Sharon. Bennett wanted to return to his jazz roots with this, his third LP. Bennett relates stories about this album in his autobiography, The Good Life:

Ralph and I wanted to make a jazz statement in a big way, and I came up with the idea of recording an album of standards that put the spotlight on different kinds of rhythm by using all the great jazz drummers I could find. We talked the concept over during our first few months on the road, and gradually it all came together. The first recording date was in June 1957, with Chico Hamilton. I was delighted with the results, particularly with the tongue-twisting. super-percussive title track, “The Beat of My Heart.” Mitch came to the first recording date, but was unusually quiet. Maybe he hoped he was giving us enough rope to hang ourselves. But when the album came out, an army of jazz fans said, Hey, this guy knows how to swing. A whole new audience accepted me—in fact, I still get my biggest reactions at jazz festivals the world over.

Album Facts

Release Date December 1, 1957
Label Columbia (CL-1079)
Producers Mitch Miller, Al Ham
Vocals Tony Bennett
Arrangements Ralph Sharon, Tony Bennett
Piano Ralph Sharon
Percussion Art Blakey, Chico Hamilton, Jo Jones, Candido Camero, Sabu Martinez, Billy Exiner
Tenor Sax Al Cohn
Trumpet Nat Adderly
Trombone Robert Alexander, Jim Dahl, Kai Winding
Flute Herbie Mann, Spencer Sinatra, William Slapin
Vibes Eddie Costa
Guitar John Pisano
Bass Milt Hinton, Eddie Saranski, James Bond

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