The song of the day for Thursday, October 10, 2019, is “Street of Dreams.”

About This Song

“Street of Dreams” was written in 1932 by Victor Young and Sam M. Lewis. The song has a classic depression-era sense, where love is one of the few things that may be impossible for those with money, but “no one is poor as long as love is sure.” Bing Crosby was the first singer to record “Street of Dreams”; the Russ Columbo recording was also popular.

About This Version

Tony Bennett and Ralph Sharon recorded “Street of Dreams” on October 28, 1959, at the famous CBS 30th Street Studio. On that day, Bennett and Sharon came in with nothing but a briefcase full of sheet music and recorded sixteen songs, twelve of which were released on Tony Sings For Two, which wasn’t released until 1961.

Tony remembers the session in his autobiography The Good Life:

We booked time in the studio and pored through music books, trying one tune after another. The arrangements were spontaneous, and we finished each song in one or more takes. … Mitch Miller showed up at the start of the session, furious that I was going through with it. When he saw there was no dissauding 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.

“Street of Dreams,” as well as Tony Sings For Two, is available from iTunes.