The Song of the Day for Sunday, November 25, 2012 is I Used To Be Color Blind.

About I Used To Be Color Blind

This song was written by Irving Berlin in 1938 for the Fred Astaire film Carefree.

About This Version

One of my favorite small moments in the new Zen of Bennett documentary is when Mr. Bennett discovers that his black shoes were polished with brown shoe polish. He makes a little joke that the person who shined the shoes must have been color blind, at which point Lee Musiker brings up this song, thinking it may have been a Gershwin tune. Mr. Bennett says no, it’s by Irving Berlin and then throws out a the first few bars of the song. As someone who herself sings snippets of songs from the Great American Songbook for just about any occasion, I found it very charming. Besides, it’s a great song.

This version was recorded by Tony Bennett for his 1972 album under his own Improv label, Life Is Beautiful. It was arranged and conducted by the great Torrie Zito and featured the Torrie Zito Trio, with Mr. Zito (piano), John Giuffrida (bass) and Chuck Hughes (drums).