perhaps i had a premonition. two weeks ago, i popped a tony bennett duet album into my car’s cd player. it was a moment to share the soothing, cool and in control master crooner’s voice with my wife. articles had already reporting on his failing health. i wanted to taste him before it would be done in memory. shortly thereafter, his passed at 96 years.
the duets album became a game for me. i asked my wife who she thought did a good job signing with the great one. as some of the performances [other the partners] fell short, she was surprised by the big names.
mr. bennett’s particular duet album is a tribute, a serious display of musicianship and a comedy all wrapped up into one album. some younger and outstanding performers have trouble being tony bennett. on the other hand, mr. bennett had no problem being a great tony bennett. his voice and charm made him one of the few who could be loved and appreciated- while still performing- by multiple generations.
mr. bennett’s cd, is matched him up with a number of pop music’s luminaries. the challenge for these great singers was whether they could make music in mr. bennett’s dojo. the album’s difficulty is that tony was being tony and other people were trying to be tony. for most, it was not going to happen. someone simply cannot get up to speed and match an individual who had spent many decades perfecting and fine tuning his style. with this, barbara streisand, elton john and james taylor struggled in a humorous way to make beautiful music with tony. while they are great in their own right, it is most difficult to climb someone else’s mt. everest of melody, tone and rhythm. perhaps, the worst was sir paul mccartney. even one of the world greatest rock ‘n roll figures was knee capped.
the album does have some remarkable performances. i billy joel’s “the good life” with mr. bennett is wonderful. mr. joel, for his performance, was given advice from, mr. bennett to sing “like himself.” mr. joel, like a son, didn’t listen and tried to impress tony. he, a person who embraced the song lyrics and meaning as much as mr. bennett, pulled it off. the song has a father and son feel.
mr. danny bennett, tony’s actual son, deserves the credit for this spectacular back side of his father’s career. many years prior, during a difficult time in his father’s life, he took over as manager. he went on a quixotic mission to get another generation to fall in love with the man he loved. he succeeded. his father enjoyed one of the greatest comebacks in music history. if not for this devoted son, this great second chapter of a music career would not have existed.
be well!!
if you enjoyed this post, please “like”
if you would like to read more posts, click here
if you find this post meaningful, please share
The Ten Commandments Project 