My Bennett memories

My earliest memory of Tony Bennett comes not from listening to his music but from just the title of one of his songs.  It was when I was told that the longest song title in history was From The Candy Store On The Corner To The Chapel On The Hill a big hit by Bennett.  It was indeed long, 13 words in all.  I went to the Net before writing this piece to check if this still holds true.  It does not. In fact, there is a song by the Swedish band Rednex with a title that has an incredible 52 words. 

No need to bother about it though.  It is not as nice as From The Candy Store. Besides, this one got me interested in listening to other Tony Bennett songs.  He has a lot.  One of these days I might try to find out how much he has actually recorded within a career that now spans over 60 years.  But even if I never get to find that out, his hits are more than enough to make him a legend in the annals of popular music.

What is most interesting about Bennett is that he has bucked prevailing music styles and has consistently remained trendy with all sorts of music lovers.  It almost seems like he transforms himself with every new era that comes along.  It all began in 1951 with Because Of You. When powerful ballads were the rage during the ’50s, Bennett had Rags To Riches, Stranger In Paradise and Boulevard Of Broken Dreams. He had kids dancing the romantic slow drag to The Good Life, Blue Velvet, Fly Me To The Moon and his iconic I Left My Heart In San Francisco with the arrival of the rock and roll in the ’60s.

He also had the swagger to swing with the likes of The Best Is Yet To Come, For Once In My Life and Just In Time. And there are many others that his husky, velvet tones popularized over these past six decades. Cold Cold Heart, Who Can I Turn To, Tender Is The Night, Once Upon A Time, This Is All I Ask, If I Ruled The World, Yesterday I Heard The Rain, I’ll Be Seeing You, How Do You Keep The Music Playing, etc.

His, by far, most radical transformation happened in 1994 when without missing a beat or changing a note he stepped on the MTV stage to perform his music in MTV Unplugged.  MTV, the home of rockers and hip hoppers, eagerly welcomed the 68-year-old artist. The resulting TV show broke ratings’ records and the soundtrack was named Album of the Year at the Grammys.  Best of all, the songs of Tony Bennett found a whole new audience among the MTV generation. Needless to say  he then also turned into the hippest crooner ever. Who would have thought that he was once considered a has-been who almost died from cocaine overdose a few years before.

And that was just a foretaste of something even more exciting.  Seven years ago when he celebrated his 80th birthday, Bennett recorded the memorable album Duets: An American Classic, where he sang his big hits again but with popular pop stars. Everyone who was anybody came to Bennett’s party, Barbra Streisand, Smile; Paul McCartney, The Very Thought Of you; and Billy Joel, The Good Life. Five years later, Bennett was at it again with an even hipper line-up. Mariah Carey, When Do The Bells Ring For Me; Lady Gaga, The Lady Is A Tramp; and Body And Soul by Amy Winehouse.

This music and the man who created them will be what Filipinos will be able to see and listen to in Tony Bennett In Concert 2013.  The legend, who, the world had been falling all over itself to honor with tributes and awards these past years, will be performing in Manila.  Bennett will be at the Plenary Hall of the PICC at the CCP Complex in Pasay City at 8 p.m. on Sept. 17.  It would be impossible for Bennett to sing all of his hits, let alone even just half of them in one show. But I am sure he will do more than enough to delight his local followers.

The show is presented by MMI and Ovation Productions and tickets are now available at www.ticketworld.com.ph (with tel. no. 891-9999).  Tickets are priced at P12,657, P10,548, P6,328 and P3,164.

Martin at the Big Dome

Still on the concert scene.  Looming legend Martin Nievera, who is commemorating 30 years of his music with the 3D Tatlong Dekada concert at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Sept. 13, has released two vinyl albums.  These are the hit compilations Under The Covers and Off The Record with songs like Forever, You Are My Song, Kahit Isang Saglit, Ikaw Lang Ang Mamahalin, Forever, You’re My Everything and others. 

If I am not mistaken, this is the first time that these songs will be heard on vinyl and the experience should be interesting.  You know vinyl, those were the long-play albums from 30 years ago that were overtaken by cassette tapes and then later by CDs. Well, vinyl is staging a comeback and Martin’s LPs are pressed on a 150-gram virgin vinyl plate made in the Czech Republic.  This is truly a very special treat for Martin’s fans.