The Star Online: Entertainment: Music
The Star Online: Entertainment: Music |
| Posted: 29 Sep 2011 06:08 PM PDT TONY Bennett's Duets II could perhaps be the music legend's final production album, and if it is, it will be a grand send off. Sony Music has 20 Duets II CDs to be won. All you have to do is answer the questions below and complete the slogan. 1. What is the song title of the duet Tony Bennett did with Amy Winehouse? 2. Duets II features Tony Bennett singing a song each with two Canadian artistes. Name one of the Canadian artistes. Complete this slogan in less than 25 words: "I want a copy of Tony Bennett's Duets II album because ..." For the contest, direct all e-mail entries to contest.my@sonymusic.com complete with personal details (name, address, IC number, contact number), answers and slogan. Contest title: Tony Bennett/The Star. The closing date is Oct 7, 2011. Winners will be notified by Sony. Related Story: |
| Posted: 29 Sep 2011 06:07 PM PDT Tony Bennett is as timeless as the songs he sings on Duets II, which has put him back on the charts. NOT many people get to celebrate their 85th birthday, but veteran crooner Tony Bennett (born Anthony Dominick Benedetto in 1926) has just had his bash, heralding the imminent release of his latest album Tony Bennett: Duets II. The album is a celebration of this native New Yorker's sterling 60-odd year career in the music industry that has seen him rub shoulders with glitterati, the likes of Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles, Nat King Cole, Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, Duke Ellington and Fred Astaire – all counted as friends. Bennett was in an ebullient mood recently when speaking on the phone from his apartment overlooking Central Park, New York. "I have a lovely view from where I am. There's so much nature here. Everyone comes to New York City", he said, when asked to describe the weather and his surroundings. The man, who immortalised songs like I Left My Heart In San Francisco, I've Got The World On A String and The Best Is Yet To Come, has reason to be upbeat. He is glad and grateful that he's come this far relatively unscathed. "I'm happy for the fact that I'm in good health. I have a lot of energy and I'm still going strong. That apart, the reviews in the papers are saying that I've never sounded better," he said, practically smiling over the phone. Those aren't the only reasons for his joyful mood – he also has a cracking new album under his belt, one that saw him travel the world to record. With the aid of his son Danny, Bennett assembled a collection of singers to work with. The obvious collaborators include Norah Jones, Josh Groban, Michael Buble and Natalie Cole, but odd balls there are, too, like Queen Latifah, Carrie Underwood, k.d. Lang, Sheryl Crow, Lady Gaga and John Mayer, among others. "They're all such fantastic artistes. My first duets album was very successful and so Sony asked me to do another. This time around though, we did it differently ... I went to them instead of them coming to me," explained the octogenarian of 2006's Tony Bennett Duets: An American Classic (which won him three Grammy Awards and went on to sell three million copies). Of the artistes he worked with, he rates Lady Gaga as the most unique. "She was the most exciting," said the humble man, who was the first cameo (role) in prime time cartoon The Simpsons. Bennett's global trek saw him meeting Andrea Bocelli in Pisa, Italy (where the blind Italian tenor served him a nice Italian meal after recording in his home studio), Mariah Carey and Natalie Cole in Los Angeles, Aretha Franklin in Detroit and the late Amy Winehouse in London, a process from which he extracted much joy. At his age, Bennett has truly lived the highs and lows, including being drafted into the army during WWII. Naturally, he sees Winehouse's early demise as a tragic end to an amazing talent. "We recorded a great jazz song, Johnny Green's Body And Soul. Tragically, she passed on not long after that. She was such a big fan of mine. She and her dad came to so many of my shows and she was just so thrilled to be recording with me," he revealed with a tinge of sorrow in his voice. Bennett walks the talk when he said he was hoping to talk to her about her drug issues. He himself is no stranger to substance abuse, having nearly overdosed on cocaine at his lowest ebb in 1979 when he was struggling to re-establish himself as an artiste (due to the changing musical landscape) and grappling with his second marriage. Body And Soul was released as a charity single recently, in aid of the Amy Winehouse Youth Foundation. The foundation was set up by her family to help a number of charities connected with children and young people. Duets II, which has the magic touch of legendary producer Phil Ramone, features a slew of classic tunes, standards he made into hit records in the 1950s and 1960s ... It Had To Be You, Stranger In Paradise, The Way You Look Tonight, One More For My Baby and Sunny Side Of The Street are just some of the gems that fill up the CD and bonus DVD (of Bennett recording with his co-stars) that comes with the package. But Bennett is far from being a mere musician. He's also a revered visual artist and three of his original pieces are featured in the permanent collection at the Smithsonian collections, including his portraits of Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington. It's his interest in art that led him to his work for charity. He founded the Frank Sinatra School Of The Arts – a public arts high school in his hometown of Astoria, Queens, and with his wife Susan (Crow), he established Exploring The Arts, a charitable organisation which supports arts education in New York City public high schools. But why name a school after Ol' Blue Eyes? "Because he was my closest friend," Bennett almost deadpans. "I loved him so much ... and why wouldn't I? He called me the best singer in the world," Bennet offers candidly. His charity work earned him the United Nation's Humanitarian Award in 2007 and he's rightfully proud of that achievement. "What an honour that is to have? I'll cherish that for the rest of my life. It's such a blessing," he shared. His championing for a better world isn't a new-found pursuit. Bennett even took part in the civil rights march with Martin Luther King in 1965 and was accorded the Martin Luther King's Salute To Greatness Award. And at no time did he spare a thought about how that could have affected his livelihood. "That had nothing to do with my career. All the people in the United States felt that way. No one should be treated as a slave ... and no one is more important than the next person. We are all on earth as equals and we should be treated with honour and respect," declared the genial singer, who's performed for presidents Dwight Eisenhower, John Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George Bush Sr, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama. Mention sports and there's only one that the singer is inextricably associated with – tennis. In fact, he was recently honoured at the US Open, which began on Aug 29, an event that marked his 85 birthday (Aug 3). While this maybe startling, Bennett still plays tennis three times a week. So, does he have a favourite player? McEnroe? Borg? Becker? None of the above! "I love the way Roger Federer plays. He's such an academic player, and I feel he's the best teacher to learn from," he enthused of his favourite player. When asked to single out a career highlight, there was only one thing on his mind. "I'm so grateful I got to record a beautiful song like I Left My Heart In San Francisco. It's such a special thing for me to be associated with that song," he said of his staple hit written by George Cory and Douglass Cross in 1954. So, what would the meaning of life be to Tony Bennett, then? "To me, it's the search for truth and beauty. I have a wonderful family and the public has been good to me. What I do is not work to me. I could have retired a long time ago, but I still want to improve," he shared contentedly. If someone on the street who didn't know him came up and asked him to describe Tony Bennett as a singer and human being, what would he say? "I guess I'd like to be known as a good person. Sinatra said it best ... what did he know, huh?" he offered slyly. Bennett has recorded over 100 albums and won 15 Grammy awards in his career. He has the unique claim of being the only living performer to have albums charting in six decades from the 1950s to the present. The man also has the special honour of presenting The Beatles with their first ever award at the NME Poll Winners Concert in 1965. He's even had his film biography produced by Academy-winning director/actor Clint Eastwood, yet he's as humble as your favourite uncle. His zest to do what he does best continues to drive him. "I love to perform and I enjoy making people happy. I'll never retire." As they say, form is current, but class is permanent. They just don't make them like they used to. Tony Bennett: Duets II is available from Sony Music. Related Story: |
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