Tony Bennett 1926-2023
Oh, the good life, full of fun seems to be the ideal
Mm, the good life lets you hide all the sadness you feel
You won't really fall in love for you can't take the chance
So please be honest with yourself, don't try to fake romance
It's the good life to be free and explore the unknown
Like the heartaches when you learn you must face them alone
Please remember I still want you, and in case you wonder why
Well, just wake up, kiss the good life goodbye
And here's the original....
Having spent a lot of my childhood in San Francisco on family day trips, and then going to college there, Tony Bennett's 'I Left My Heart [in San Francisco]' is ingrained in my brain.
ReplyDeleteHappy memories.
RIP
Funny that a native New Yorker could write such an iconic song about San Francisco.
DeleteThe first thing Anthony Dominick Benedetto did for his country was fight for it.
ReplyDeleteHe saw active service in WWII at the Battle of the Bulge.
As an infantryman he said it was like having a front line seat in Hell.
You'd think he'd never look back after I Left My Heart in San Francisco.
Rock music changed the scene, his record sales fell away.
When his career was down he did an album with jazz pianist Bill Evans.
Tony was in London without a manager or record contract.
I think he was singing at the Top of the Town during which time he had
an adverse reaction to cocaine use.
His son took over management of his father's career and saved it.
Strangers in Paradise, one of his big show tune hits.
The Shadow of Your Smile. A Johnny Mandel song, lyrics Paul Webster.
Yesterday I Heard the Rain. Armando Manzanero & Gene Lees.
He sang with Lady Gaga and Amy Winehouse for his birthday album.
A good man. A man of the people. He went to war. Later, another New Yorker called Trump hid from war like a chicken.
DeleteWriters work alone and must not expect kudos or success.
DeleteSingers and musicians are lost without gigs.
Alice Clark (1947-2004) the soul singer made one album and
disappeared. She belonged to a fundamentalist church.
Licorice McKechnie vanished into the black pit of Scientology.
Jewel was homeless when she cut her first album.
Gene Lees, Whitney Balliett & Bruce Crowther wrote about jazz singers.
I think there is a YouTube film of Tony Bennett and Dave Brubeck.
Brubeck was the great survivor. He had a happy home life.
Correction.
DeleteThe Talk of the Town.
Long vanished.
Bill Evans with Tony Bennett on Johnny Carson's Show.
DeleteYouTube.
Bill Evans on Rock Music. YouTube.
Yes, I listened to Tony Bennet. I will probably call him up on you tube tonight.
ReplyDeleteI imagine you waltzing Jean in the kitchen and singing Tony Bennett songs.
DeleteI'll listen later to Tony Bennett, I have my own playing playing in the background here, but I never liked Sacha Distel
ReplyDelete"playlist" stupid fingers and where is my mind?
ReplyDeleteYour mind is in the clouds Elsie!
DeleteI wonder what triggered that off and what this post's headline has to do with the song. A sweet, sad, short song.
ReplyDeleteThe French lyrics differ quite a bit from the English ones, but the message stays the same.
Vale! = Farewell. Tony Bennett died yesterday.
DeleteAh! Thank you for explaining. I thought of vale as in "Vale of York". Not having watched or heard any news yesterday, I was not aware of Tony Bennett's death.
DeleteHe was such a smooth singer and a good entertainer too.
ReplyDeleteAnd a good man.
DeleteThis sent me to Wikipedia and an interesting read on Tony Bennett. Italian, artist, singer and demoted in the army for dining with a black fellow serviceman. Life long Democrat. Thanks Janx.
ReplyDeleteNot just an entertainer. He stood with Martin Luther KIng and the rest.
DeleteHe did a concert a year or so ago, in New York, it was amazing how deep the music memory was.
ReplyDeleteHe was admired by many young artistes including Lady Gaga and Amy Winehouse.
DeleteTony Bennett sure had a full life! It's great to celebrate him!
ReplyDeleteHe was more than just a crooner.
DeleteOut of all the comments on Steve's blog about his mom today,your orphan comment really stands out.How nice of you to point this out. Maybe today you could do without a pithy reply.
ReplyDeleteI don't understand what you are talking about Sandy. I have communicated with Steve regularly for several years following each other's blogs - and I am an orphan too.
DeleteInteresting resemblance between the two young men.
ReplyDeleteSacha Distel also had a wonderful singing voice.
DeleteBoth good singers with their own inimitable style. Sad that Tony Bennett didn't make it to his century.
ReplyDeleteTony Bennett died the same day as my mother. I suspect he will be forever linked to our family in that way, at least in our minds!
ReplyDelete