The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered

The song of the day for Wednesday, April 25, 2018 is “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered.”

About This Song

“Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered,” written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, was one of the hit songs from 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. And a song your author fell in love with at the tender age of eight after hearing her parents playing it on the stereo when they thought the kids were asleep.

About This Version

I so enjoyed listening to parts of When Lights Are Low yesterday that I had to also take in one of Tony Bennett’s best albums: Tony Sings For Two. Bennett and Ralph Sharon held a legendary recording session at the Columbia 30th Street Studio–they went in with a briefcase of sheet music and recorded sixteen songs in a single session, many of them on the first take. Just Bennett, Ralph Sharon and Frank Laico as engineer. Even though the album was recorded in October, 1959, it wasn’t released until early 1961. This album is quite close to perfect.

Bewitched

Tony Bennett · Tony Sings For Two · Song · 1961


“Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered,” as well as Tony Sings For Two, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: I Could Write a Book

The song of the day for Thursday, July 14, 2016 is “I Could Write a Book.”

About This Song

Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart wrote “I Could Write a Book” for the Broadway musical Pal Joey, where it was introduced by Gene Kelly and Leila Ernst. This has always been an interesting song. Today it’s considered a lovely romantic number, but in the context of the musical, it’s sung as a phony love song in order to woo the innocent ingenue. It’s been widely recorded by artists including Frank Sinatra, Rosemary Clooney, Betty Carter, Anita O’Day and Ella Fitzgerald.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “I Could Write a Book” in 1973 with the Ruby Braff – George Barnes Quartet. It was released in 1976 on Tony Bennett Sings 10 Rodgers & Hart Songs, released on Bennett’s Improv label.

I Could Write A Book

Listen to I Could Write A Book on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 2004


“I Could Write a Book,” as well as The Complete Improv Recordings, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered

The song of the day for Sunday, July 10, 2016 is “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered.”

About This Song

“Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered,” written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, was one of the hit songs from 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

We return to the sublime Tony Sings For Two for today’s beautiful version of Tony Bennett singing “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered.” It’s one my most favorite songs in the world and I love this recording.

Bewitched

Tony Bennett · Tony Sings For Two · Song · 1961


“Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered,” as well as Tony Sings For Two, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: There’s No Business Like Show Business

The song of the day for Saturday, May 28, 2016 is “There’s No Business Like Show Business.”

About This Song

Riving Berlin wrote “There’s No Business Like Show Business” for the 1946 musical Annie Get Your Gun, which starred Ethel Merman and Ray Middleton.

About This Version

“There’s No Business Like Show Business” is one of my favorite Irving Berlin songs. However, Tony Bennett has never recorded this song. But even Tony Bennett gets to take a night off every now and again and so I’m turning over the singing chores to two great American singing actresses.

Our featured recording of “There’s No Business Like Show Business” is from the 1954 film of same name, which starred Ethel Merman, Donald O’Connor and Marilyn Monroe. The film featured a variety of songs written by Irving Berlin.

There"s No Business Like Show Business

Irving Berlin, Ethel Merman · There"s No Business Like Show Business (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) · Song · 1954

About Today

Today being video Saturday, I bring you scenes from Elaine Stritch’s Tony-winning one woman show from 2002: Elaine Stritch At Liberty, directed by George Wolfe. This show features Ms. Stritch, who was 77 at the time this production was originally mounted on Broadway. It was later filmed for television broadcast, where it won an Emmy Award. She opened the show with “There’s No Business Like Show Business,” interspersed with quips about her life in the theatre. Here’s that number:

I’m still in amazement at how fabulous her legs still were at the age of 77. To bring ourselves full circle, I’m featuring another scene from At Liberty, this time about her understudying Ethel Merman in Irving Berlin’s Call Me Madam while simultaneously appearing in a revival of Pal Joey. It’s as funny as funny can be.

This video was posted by the Schubert Theater in New Haven, which opted to bleep out certain words. Still funny. Brilliantly. After all, there’s no business like show business.

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Song of the Day: Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered

The song of the day for Thursday, January 7, 2015 is “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered.”

About This Song

“Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered,” written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, was one of the hit songs from 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 recorded “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered” on October 28, 1959 for one of my favorite of his albums, Tony Sings For Two, released in 1961. For this album, Tony Bennett and Ralph Sharon went into the studio with a briefcase full of sheet music and recorded sixteen(!) songs in a single day, which must be some kind of record. It was just the two of them: the voice and the piano with no drums or bass. It’s a really wonderful album and this is one of my favorite songs on it.

Bewitched

Tony Bennett · Tony Sings For Two · Song · 1961


“Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered,” as well as Tony Sings For Two, is available from iTunes.