The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: Begin The Beguine

The song of the day for Saturday, June 11, 2016 is “Begin The Beguine.”

About This Song

One of Cole Porter’s most popular songs, “Begin the Beguine” is from the 1935 musical Jubilee. The song has an unusual structure, having a 108 measure length, as opposed to the standard 32-bar structure of most popular music. One of the earliest popular recordings was Artie Shaw’s instrumental in 1938. The middle eastern style of the song is well-served by Shaw’s clarinet solo.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this version of “Begin the Beguine” in 1957, with an arrangement by Ralph Sharon; the recording features drummer Jo Jones. The song was originally omitted from Bennett’s album The Beat of My Heart, but was added to the first CD release.

Begin The Beguine

Listen to Begin The Beguine on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1957


“Begin The Beguine,” as well as The Beat of My Heart, is available from iTunes.

About Today

Our first video today is from the movie Broadway Melody of 1940 and features the great Fred Astaire and the great Eleanor Powell dancing to our song of the day.

I was a pretty serious clarinet player in high school and adored both Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw. I think Shaw’s recording of “Begin the Beguine” is a real masterpiece, so here’s an extra video today.

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Song of the Day: Love For Sale

The song of the day for Tuesday, June 7, 2016 is “Love For Sale.”

About This Song

Cole Porter wrote “Love For Sale” in 1930 for the Broadway musical The New Yorkers. The song was sung by a prostitute advertising her services. The song was considered rather scandalous at the time. In fact, for the production of The New Yorkers, it was supposed to be sung by the white star Kathryn Crawford, but the song was assigned to an African-American singer instead. In spite of being banned from play on the radio, “Love For Sale” has had many fine recordings, including those by Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday, Dinah Washington and Miles Davis

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Love For Sale” in 1957 for his third album: The Beat of My Heart. For this album, Tony Bennett and his new pianist, Ralph Sharon, gathered drummers and percussionists from all over the world to collaborate on the album. “Love For Sale” featured Candido, Sabu and Billy Exiner.

Love for Sale

Listen to Love for Sale on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1957


“Love For Sale,” as well as The Beat of My Heart, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: It’s So Peaceful In The Country

The song of the day for Monday, April 18, 2016 is “It’s So Peaceful In The Country.”

About This Song

Today’s song, “It’s So Peaceful In The Country,” was written by Alec Wilder ca. 1941. He wrote it for the singer Mildred Bailey, who recorded it in 1941. Wilder was a great friend to singers Tony Bennett and Frank Sinatra. He was an admirer of jazz musicians for their ability to improvise. His book, American Popular Song, is easily the most important book ever written about the American songbook.

About This Version

Tony Bennett originally recorded “It’s So Peaceful In The Country” in 1957 for his album The Beat Of My Heart. However, it was only used on that album for the CD re-release some years later. It is definitely worth the wait. Tony sings this song so tenderly and beautifully.

It"s So Peacefull In the Country

Listen to It"s So Peacefull In the Country on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1957


“It’s So Peaceful In The Country,” as well as the Beat Of My Heart, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Blues In The Night

The song of the day for Wednesday, February 10, 2016 is “Blues In The Night.”

About This Song

“Blues in the Night” was written in 1941 for the film of the same name by Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer. Arlen wrote the music first and wrote a true blues song. Johnny Mercer, who later wrote the lyrics, drew on his southern heritage to write the exceptional blues lyrics. In fact, Mercer brought in an early version of the lyrics with this note in the margin: “My mama done told me.” Arlen saw that phrase and the rest is, as they say, musical history.

About This Version

Tony Bennett has recorded this song twice. Today we are featuring the first recording, made in 1957 for Bennett’s second jazz album The Beat of My Heart. Bennett and his new pianist, Ralph Sharon, arranged the entire album.

Bennett notes in his autobiography, The Good Life, that he sang “Blues In The Night” while serving in the Army as a band singer at the close of World War II.

Blues In The Night

Listen to Blues In The Night on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1957


“Blues In The Night,” as well as The Beat Of My Heart, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Let’s Begin

The song of the day for Thursday, January 14, 2016 is “Let’s Begin.”

About This Song

“Let’s Begin” was written by Jerome Kern and Otto Harbach for the 1933 Broadway musical Roberta, which also included many other fine Kern songs, including “Smoke Gets In Your Eyes” and “The Touch of Your Hand.”

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this jazz version of “Let’s Begin” in 1957 for his third album, The Beat of My Heart. The terrific arrangement is by Ralph Sharon.

Let"s Begin

Tony Bennett · The Beat Of My Heart · Song · 1957


“Let’s Begin,” as well as The Beat of My Heart, is available from iTunes.

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