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The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

June 23, 2020 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: Blue Velvet

The song of the day for Tuesday, June 24, 2020, is “Blue Velvet.”

About Today

Last weekend I had the very great pleasure to watch actress Holland Taylor’s one-woman show (for which she was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Performance by A Leading Actress in a Play) about Ann Richards, the late former governor of Texas. Appropriately, it’s named ANN. One of the unexpected and pleasant surprises was when she recalls that she and her husband’s favorite song was Tony Bennett’s “Blue Velvet.” ANN is currently showing in the U.S. on the PBS program Great Performances. I heartily recommend it. It’s very funny–I laughed out loud a lot.

Ann and Holland: This one’s for you.

About This Song

“Blue Velvet” was written in 1950 by Bernie Wayne and Lee Morris. While Bennett’s recording is most well-known, it’s also been recorded by Bobby Vinton and, more recently, by Tony Bennett and k.d. lang and Lana Del Rey.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Blue Velvet” on July 17, 1951; it was released as a single that year and features an arrangement by Percy Faith. It was one of the top 20 songs on Billboard. “Blue Velvet” is one of Bennett’s early recordings that are compiled on The Columbia Singles, Vol. 1 CD, available in his 2011 Complete Collection.

“Blue Velvet,” as well as all the singles collected on The Columbia Singles, Vol. 1, is available from Apple Music.

Filed Under: Song of the Day Tagged With: ANN, Ann Richards, Bernie Wayne, Holland Taylor, Lee Morris, Percy Faith, The Columbia Singles Vol. 1, Tony Bennett

July 31, 2019 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: Sing You Sinners

The song of the day for Thursday, August 1, 2019, is “Sing You Sinners.”

About This Song

“Sing You Sinners” was written in 1930 by W. Franke Harling and Sam Coslow for the movie Honey, which starred Lillian Roth.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Sing You Sinners” in 1950, his first year under contract with Columbia. It was released as single in October 1950; it is collected on The Columbia Singles, Vol. 1, which also includes his first recording for Columbia, “The Boulevard of Broken Dreams.” Marty Manning wrote the fine arrangement for “Sing You Sinners.”

Sing You Sinners

Listen to Sing You Sinners on Spotify. Tony Bennett · Song · 2011.

“Sing You Sinners,” as well as The Columbia Singles, Vol. 1, is available from iTunes.

Filed Under: Song of the Day Tagged With: Marty Manning, Sam Coslow, The Columbia Singles Vol. 1, Tony Bennett, W. Franke Harling

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