The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Song of the Day: Return to Me (Regresa A Mi)

The Song of the Day for October 11, 2012 is Return To Me.

About Return To Me

Return to Me was written in 1957 by Carmen Lombardo (brother of bandleader Guy Lombardo) and Danny DiMinno. In January 1958, Dean Martin did the first recording of the song and the song still remains  associated with Dean Martin. In fact, the second box set of Dean Martin was entitled Return to Me. The song was also featured in a film of the same name, Return to Me (2000) with David Duchovny and Minnie Driver.

About This Version

Today, we present two YouTube videos. First, Dean Martin singing Return to Me.

And, next and again, the video of the duet of Regresa a Mi, with Tony Bennett and Vicente Fernández.

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Song of the Day: Cold, Cold Heart

The Song of the Day for October 10, 2012 is Cold, Cold Heart.

About Cold, Cold Heart

Cold, Cold Heart was written by the great Hank Williams in 1951. In an interesting parallel with Tony Bennett’s I Left My Heart in San Francisco, Cold, Cold Heart was the B-side when it was released by Hank Williams. It went on, of course, to become a very popular country and western song as well as a popular song.

About This Version

We choose Cold, Cold Heart in preparation for the Viva Duets album, on which Tony Bennett will be singing this song with Vincentico.

This version is the original, recorded in 1951. It was arranged and conducted by Percy Faith and reached #1 on the Billboard charts. It was originally released as a single, of course.

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Song of the Day: Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me)

The Song of the Day for October 9, 2012 is Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me).

About Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me)

From the 1964 musical The Roar of the Greasepaint – The Smell of the Crowd, Who Can I Turn To was written by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley. It was first recorded by Shirley Bassey, but the recording wasn’t popular.  Tony Bennett then recorded the song and that version became a hit and helped to transfer the musical from London to Broadway.

About This Version

We feature Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me) as we prepare for Viva Duets, as Mr. Bennett is singing this song with Gloria Estefan.

Mr. Bennett recorded the song for his 1964 album, Who Can I Turn To. The song was arranged and conducted by George Siravo and the album produced by Ernie Alstchuler, featuring the Ralph Sharon Trio [with Billy Exiner (d) and Hal Gaylord(b)] along with an orchestra.

Mr. Bennett also recorded the song with Bill Evans for Together Again and as duet with Queen Latifah on Duets II.

Today’s version is the original, as compiled on Fifty Years – The Artistry of Tony Bennett.

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Song the the Day: The Good Life

The Song of the Day for October 7, 2012 is The Good Life.

About The Good Life

The Good Life, originally known as La Belle Vie, was written by composer Sacha Distel with lyrics by Jack Reardon. It was written 1962 and was featured in the movie Seven Capital Sins. The song is primariy associated with Tony Bennett, but has been sung by many other performers, including Frank Sinatra, Petula Clark, Duke Ellington, Shirley Horn, and many more.

About This Version

We choose this song today in our preparation for Viva Duets, which will include a duet of this song with Franco De Vita. This version is from Mr. Bennett’s 1963 I Wanna Be Around. Note that Mr. Bennett used “The Good Life” as the title of his autobiography.