The Year of Tony Bennett

An Appreciation of the Art and Music of Tony Bennett

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Tony Live! Old Devil Moon

The song of the day for Saturday, July 11, 2020, is “Old Devil Moon.”

About Today

Tony Live moves to 1994 and one of Tony Bennett’s greatest triumphs: His live appearance on MTV Unplugged on April 12, 1994. The performance was a huge hit, for both MTV and Bennett. The concert album MTV Unplugged not only won Bennett the 1994 Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance but also the coveted award for Album of the Year.

About This Song

“Old Devil Moon” was written by for the 1947 musical Finian’s Rainbow, which also gave us “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?” While Alec Wilder was no fan of “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?”, in America Popular Song, he praises “Old Devil Moon” as “a well-written, wholly convincing song. It drives, and its initial intensity is sustained throughout.”

About This Version

“Old Devil Moon,” as well as MTVUnplugged, is available from Apple Music.

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Tony Live! Old Devil Moon

The song of the day for Saturday, June 20, 2020, is “Old Devil Moon.”

About This Song

“Old Devil Moon” was written by Burton Lane and Yip Harburg for the 1947 musical Finian’s Rainbow, which also gave us “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?” While Alec Wilder was no fan of “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?”, in America Popular Song, he praises “Old Devil Moon” as “a well-written, wholly convincing song. It drives, and its initial intensity is sustained throughout.”

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded this live version of “Old Devil Moon” in 1971 at The Royal Albert Hall in London, backed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra. It uses the Marion Evans arrangement from 1967 for Tony Makes It Happen! The concert was released on the album Get Happy.

“Old Devil Moon,” as well as Get Happy, is available from Apple Music.

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Song of the Day: Last Night When We Were Young

The song of the day for Tuesday, May 12, 2020, is “Last Night When We Were Young.”

About This Song

“Last Night When We Were Young” was written in 1935 by Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg.

Harold Arlen considered “Last Night When We Were Young” to be one of his favorite songs. In American Popular Song, Alec Wilder calls it a “most remarkable and beautiful song … (that) goes far beyond the boundaries of popular music.”

Yip Harburg has said that he doesn’t know exactly where the title came from but that “the juxtaposition of those two phrases is almost a whole world of philosophy.” All in all, it’s a very beautiful and introspective song that is much beloved by singers. Frank Sinatra included on his wonderful album In The Wee Small Hours. It has also been recorded by Judy Garland, Mel Tormé, and Carmen McRae.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Last Night When We Were Young” in 1992 for his album Perfectly Frank, where he sings songs associated with his friend Frank Sinatra. Ralph Sharon did the arrangement.

“Last Night When We Were Young,” as well as Perfectly Frank, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: It’s Only a Paper Moon

The song of the day for Tuesday, March 10, 2020, is “It’s Only a Paper Moon.”

About This Song

“It’s Only a Paper Moon” was written in 1933 by Harold Arlen, with lyrics by Yip Harburg and Billy Rose. Originally written for an unsuccessful play called The Great Magoo, this song was used in the 1933 movie Take a Chance. Paul Whiteman recorded it that year. There were two very fine recordings in the 1940s by Ella Fitzgerald and Nat King Cole, which sealed the popularity of the song. Since that time, it has been a popular and jazz favorite that has been widely recorded.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “It’s Only a Paper Moon” in 1998 for his album for children, The Playground. Bennett is accompanied by The Ralph Sharon Quartet, featuring Sharon on piano, Paul Langosh on bass, Clayton Cameron on drums, and Gray Sargent on guitar. To the best of my knowledge, this is the first album that guitarist Gray Sargent recorded for. Gray is in Bennett’s current quartet and this writer continues to be impressed with his very fine work.

“It’s Only a Paper Moon,” as well as The Playground, is available from iTunes.

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Song of the Day: Old Devil Moon

The song of the day for Tuesday, February 26, 2020, is “Old Devil Moon.”

About This Song

“Old Devil Moon” was written by Burton Lane and Yip Harburg for the 1947 musical Finian’s Rainbow, which also gave us “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?” While Alec Wilder was no fan of “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?”, in America Popular Song he praises “Old Devil Moon” as “a well-written, wholly convincing song. It drives, and its initial intensity is sustained throughout.”

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Old Devil Moon” for his first album, Cloud 7, which is marking its 65th anniversary this week. The arrangement was written by Chuck Wayne, who also played guitar on the album.

“Old Devil Moon,” as well as Cloud 7, is available from iTunes.

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