The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: The Right To Love

The song of the day for Wednesday, May 17, 2017 is “The Right To Love.”

About This Song

Today’s song, “The Right To Love,” was written approximately in 1963, with music by Lalo Schifrin and lyrics by Gene Lees.

According to the website filmscoremonthly, this song has an interesting history. It was first recorded, without lyrics, in 1963 on an album called Reflections by Stan Getz and Lalo Schifrin. Tony Bennett liked the song from the beginning and suggested that Gene Lees write the lyrics. The resulting song is an anthem for “forbidden” love. At that time, most people associated the song with interracial relationships; in later years, it has been sung by gay singers. In addition to Bennett’s recording, this song has been recorded by Peggy Lee, Carmen McRae and k.d. lang.

“The Right To Love” is the song title most often searched for on this site and our sister site, The Interactive Tony Bennett Discography.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “The Right To Love” in 1965 for his wonderful album If I Ruled The World: Songs For the Jet Set. The very fine arrangement was done by Don Costa.

The Right To Love

Tony Bennett · If I Ruled The World: Songs For The Jet Set · Song · 1965


“The Right To Love,” as well as If I Ruled The World: Songs For the Jet Set, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Lucky To Be Me

The song of the day for Tuesday, May 16, 2017 is “Lucky To Be Me.”

About This Song

Today’s song, “Lucky To Be Me,” is another song from the 1944 musical On The Town, written by Leonard Bernstein, Adolph Green and Betty Comden. Like our recently featured “Some Other Time,” this song was also cut from the 1949 film version. While I truly enjoyed Frank Sinatra and the rest of the cast in the film, from a musical standpoint, it’s a real bust. The original score is gorgeous and is worth listening to.

About This Version

Tony Bennett and Bill Evans recorded “Lucky To Be Me” in 1976 for their second album, Together Again, released in 1977.

Lucky To Be Me - Remastered 2003

Listen to Lucky To Be Me - Remastered 2003 on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett, Bill Evans · 1977


“Lucky To Be Me,” as well as Together Again, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: The Two Lonely People

The song of the day for Monday, May 15, 2017 is “The Two Lonely People.”

About This Song

Bills Evans wrote “The Two Lonely People” in 1971; Carol Hall wrote the lyrics. The song first appeared on Evans’ 1971 album The Bill Evans Album. The song was also recorded in 1974 on the album But Beautiful, recorded live with Stan Getz at Jazz Middelheim in Antwerp, Belgium.

About This Version

Tony Bennett and Bill Evans recorded “The Two Lonely People” in 1976 for their second album, Together Again.

The Two Lonely People - Remastered 2003

Listen to The Two Lonely People - Remastered 2003 on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett, Bill Evans · 1977


“The Two Lonely People,” as well as Together Again, is available from iTunes.

About Today

The song is one of the most-searched songs for both this site and our sister site, The Interactive Tony Bennett Discography. The lyrics for this song are also searched for quite often. Thus, I”m happy to present them here.

The two lonely people sat silently staring
Their eyes looking coldly ahead
The two lonely people once loved and were caring
But now it’s all over and dead
They don’t know what happened
They can’t think what happened
They had something fine on their own
But the two lonely people have turned into statues
Yes turned into statues of stone
The world was their moon once
The yellow ones
It held all their hopes and their dreams
But time came and broke them
Reality woke them
The world’s not so pretty as it seems
For all that once mattered
Is old now and battered
But must it be shattered in two
The two lonely people
Would give all their life
Yes give all their life
If they knew… The two lonely people sat silently staring
Their eyes looking coldly ahead
The two lonely people sat silently staring
Their eyes looking coldly ahead

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Song of the Day: My Mom

The song of the day for Sunday, May 14, 2017 is “My Mom.”

About This Song

This lovely 1932 song by Walter Donaldson was quite popular at time, with recordings by George Jessell and Rudy Vallee, among others. Tony Bennett relates in his autobiography The Good Life, that his father used to sing this song to him and his brothers and sisters when they were children.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “My Mom” in 1998 for his album for children, The Playground.

My Mom

Listen to My Mom on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1998


“My Mom,” as well as The Playground, is available from iTunes.

About Today

The Year of Tony Bennett honors all of our mothers, including those who are no longer here, but are always with us.

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Song of the Day: Body and Soul

The song of the day for Saturday, May 13, 2015 is “Body and Soul.”

About This Song

Today’s song, “Body and Soul” was written in 1930, with music by Johnny Green and lyrics by Edward Heyman, Robert Sour and Frank Eyton.

Ted Gioia, in his book The Jazz Standards, says that Body and Soul “is the granddaddy of jazz ballads, the quintessential torch song, and the ultimate measuring rod for tenor sax players of all generations. Even in the new millennium, this 1930 composition continues to serve as the cornerstone of the repertoire.”

Louis Armstrong recorded the song first, followed in the 1930s by recordings from primarily white society bands, such as those led by Paul Whiteman. That said, some early recordings by jazz artists including Benny Goodman and especially Art Tatum started to cement this song as a serious jazz standard (in fact, it’s rated #1 on the jazzstandards.com website). However, the Coleman Hawkins recording from 1939 is widely acknowledged to have made the song a true jazz standard. The Hawkins recording was followed by great jazz recordings by Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Charles Mingus, Thelonious Monk, Art Pepper, Dave Brubeck and many more. Fine vocal recordings include those by Billie Holiday and Tony Bennett.

About This Version

Today, we’re featuring Mr. Bennett’s first recording of “Body and Soul,” recorded in 1989 for his autobiographical album Astoria: Portrait of the Artist, released in 1990. The arrangement is by Jorge Calandrelli.

Body and Soul

Listen to Body and Soul on Spotify. Song · Tony Bennett · 1990


“Body and Soul,” as well as Astoria: Portrait of the Artist, is available from iTunes.

About Today

It’s YouTube Saturday. This Saturday, I’m happy to present the video of the recording of “Body and Soul” with Amy Winehouse, recorded in 2011 for Duets II. This was her last recording; she passed away a few months later from alcohol poisoning. This recording won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance; the album Duets II won the Grammy for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album.

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