The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: Take The Moment

The song of the day for Saturday, March 22, 2025, is “Take The Moment.”

About Today

Today we are celebrating the birth of Stephen Sondheim, who was born in New York City on March 22, 1930. He died at his country home in Roxbury, Connecticut on November 26, 2021. I just want to say that the very first musical I saw on Broadway was Company, and it changed my world.

About This Song

“Take The Moment” was written by Richard Rodgers and Stephen Sondheim, who wrote the lyrics, for the 1965 Broadway musical Do I Heart a Waltz?. The production was troubled from the start. Oscar Hammerstein passed away as the writing of the piece was started. Stephen Sondheim was a protege of Hammerstein and was asked by Arthur Laurents, who wrote the book, and Mary Rodgers, daughter of Richard Rodgers, to write the lyrics, Richard Rodgers and Sondheim did not mesh and their working relationship was not happy for either artist.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Take The Moment” on January 4, 1965, for his album If I Ruled The World: Songs For the Jet Set. Don Costa wrote the arrangement.

“Take The Moment,” as well as If I Ruled The World: Songs For the Jet Set, is available on Apple Music.

Bruce Weber interviewed Stephen Sondheim for the New York Times in June 2008. It was published with his obituary in the Times.

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Song of the Day: Spring Is Here

The song of the day for Friday, March 21, 2025, is “Spring Is Here.”

About This Song

“Spring Is Here” was written by Richard Rodgers and Larry Hart for the 1938 musical “I Married An Angel,” where it was introduced by Dennis King and Vivienne Segal. It’s one of Hart’s sadder lyrics, where the coming of Spring has no meaning, as his love is gone. But rather than a sad, depressing song, with the lovely melody by Rodgers, the song has sweet poignancy.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Spring Is Here” in July 1973 for Tony Bennett Sings 10 Rodgers & Hart Songs. Accompanying Bennett is The Ruby Braff/George Barnes Quartet, featuring: Braff on trumpet, Barnes and Wayne Wright on guitar, and John Guiffrida on bass.

“Spring Is Here,” as well as Tony Bennett Sings the Rodgers & Hart Songbook, is available on Apple Music.

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Song of the Day: Bewitched (Bothered and Bewildered)

The song of the day for Monday, March 10, 2025, is “Bewitched.”

About This Song

“Bewitched (Bothered and Bewildered)” was written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart for 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.” Despite being notey, it’s a cornerstone of the American Songbook.

About This Version

Tony Bennett and Ralph Sharon recorded “Bewitched (Bothered and Bewildered)” on October 28, 1959, for their album Tony Sings For Two, which was released in 1961.

Tony Bennett tells his story about Tony Sings For Two in 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.

“Bewitched (Bothered and Bewildered),” as well as Tony Sings For Two, is available on Apple Music.

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Song of the Day: I Could Write a Book

The song of the day for Wednesday, March 5, 2025, is “I Could Write a Book.”

About This Song

“I Could Write a Book” was written in 1940 by Richard Rodgers and Larry Hart 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 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 July 1973 for the 1976 album Tony Bennett Sings 10 Rodgers & Hart Songs. For his Rodgers and Hart albums, Bennett used The Ruby Braff/George Barnes Quartet, with Braff on cornet, Barnes and Wayne Wright on guitar, and John Guiffrida on bass. Without piano or drums, the quartet is well-suited to the Rodgers and Hart songs.

“I Could Write a Book,” as well as Tony Bennett Sings the Rodgers & Hart Songbook, is available on Apple Music.

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Song of the Day: Thou Swell

The song of the day for Sunday, February 2, 2025, is “Thou Swell.”

About This Song

“Thou Swell” was written by Richard Rodgers and Larry Hart for the 1927 musical A Connecticut Yankee, based on the Mark Twain novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court. “Thou Swell” is one of the more charming songs from the musical, as the lyrics feature a combination of modern and medieval language: “thine eyes are cute too” and “I’d feel so rich in a hut for two.”

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Thou Swell” in July 1973 with The Ruby Braff/George Barnes Quartet, featuring Braff on cornet, Barnes and Wayne Wright on guitar, and John Guifrida on bass. “Thou Swell” was released on Tony Bennett Sings More Great Rodgers & Hart in 1973 on Bennett’s Improv label.

“Thou Swell,” as well as Tony Bennett Sings the Rodgers & Hart Songbook, is available on Apple Music.