Post by erik on Jul 29, 2023 19:41:21 GMT -5
Tony Bennett, who passed away on July 21, 2023, gets the Pop Music Hits Spotlight this week with his signature song.
I LEFT MY HEART IN SAN FRANCISCO (Tony Bennett; Columbia; 1962)—Though he was often considered one of the many great singers to have come from that genre which came to be known as the Great American Songbook, and was often compared to Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett was a long way from being a blatant Sinatra wanna-be. No less a figure than Glenn Miller gave the young Italian-American singer from New York a bit of advice, saying he should not overtly try to copy “Old Blue Eyes”, but to find his style. And in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s, that’s exactly what Tony did. In many ways, however, he was even bolder than Sinatra was, or, for that matter, ever would be. Incredibly, he introduced Hank Williams, the “Hillbilly Shakespeare”, to decidedly non-country music audiences in 1951, with his recording of Williams’ country standard “Cold Cold Heart”, which went to #1 that year. Although, like Sinatra, Tony wasn’t much into rock and roll when it came along in the mid-1950’s and all but killed the Great American Songbook era, unlike Sinatra, he did not have an overtly huge distaste for the form. Bennett’s hit-making continued until the advent of the British Invasion, with his final major hit coming in 1965 with “If I Ruled The World” (from the West End musical Pickwick). But the song regarded as the one that defined him as a great American vocalist was one he recorded in 1962, called “I Left My Heart In San Francisco”. It had been written all the way back in 1953 by George Cory and Douglass Cross, and was about two amateur writers nostalgic for the city of gingerbread mansions and coastal fog banks after both had moved to New York. The lyrics also referred to the city’s fabled cable car system. Although the song was originally intended to be recorded by Claramae Turner, who often used it as an encore in her concerts, she never got around to recording it. Tony, however, did, at CBS Records’ 30th Street Studio in New York on January 23, 1962. It was originally released as the B-side of another song called “Once Upon A Time”; but when that song got no interest, radio DJ’s took extreme interest in “I Left My Heart”. And while it only got up as high as #19 on the Billboard Hot 100 in October 1962, it nevertheless became a huge standard thereafter, bridging the gap between fans of the Great American Songbook and fans of rock and roll, and winning the Grammy for Record Of The Year in 1962. During the new millennium, Tony experienced a huge renaissance in his popularity as he started working with many contemporary artists, including Lady Gaga. Although he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2016, Tony still kept active until his passing on July 21, 2023, less than two weeks before he would have turned 97 years old.
I LEFT MY HEART IN SAN FRANCISCO (Tony Bennett; Columbia; 1962)—Though he was often considered one of the many great singers to have come from that genre which came to be known as the Great American Songbook, and was often compared to Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett was a long way from being a blatant Sinatra wanna-be. No less a figure than Glenn Miller gave the young Italian-American singer from New York a bit of advice, saying he should not overtly try to copy “Old Blue Eyes”, but to find his style. And in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s, that’s exactly what Tony did. In many ways, however, he was even bolder than Sinatra was, or, for that matter, ever would be. Incredibly, he introduced Hank Williams, the “Hillbilly Shakespeare”, to decidedly non-country music audiences in 1951, with his recording of Williams’ country standard “Cold Cold Heart”, which went to #1 that year. Although, like Sinatra, Tony wasn’t much into rock and roll when it came along in the mid-1950’s and all but killed the Great American Songbook era, unlike Sinatra, he did not have an overtly huge distaste for the form. Bennett’s hit-making continued until the advent of the British Invasion, with his final major hit coming in 1965 with “If I Ruled The World” (from the West End musical Pickwick). But the song regarded as the one that defined him as a great American vocalist was one he recorded in 1962, called “I Left My Heart In San Francisco”. It had been written all the way back in 1953 by George Cory and Douglass Cross, and was about two amateur writers nostalgic for the city of gingerbread mansions and coastal fog banks after both had moved to New York. The lyrics also referred to the city’s fabled cable car system. Although the song was originally intended to be recorded by Claramae Turner, who often used it as an encore in her concerts, she never got around to recording it. Tony, however, did, at CBS Records’ 30th Street Studio in New York on January 23, 1962. It was originally released as the B-side of another song called “Once Upon A Time”; but when that song got no interest, radio DJ’s took extreme interest in “I Left My Heart”. And while it only got up as high as #19 on the Billboard Hot 100 in October 1962, it nevertheless became a huge standard thereafter, bridging the gap between fans of the Great American Songbook and fans of rock and roll, and winning the Grammy for Record Of The Year in 1962. During the new millennium, Tony experienced a huge renaissance in his popularity as he started working with many contemporary artists, including Lady Gaga. Although he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2016, Tony still kept active until his passing on July 21, 2023, less than two weeks before he would have turned 97 years old.