Another legend and world icon turns 90 today. Frank Sinatra once called him \u201cthe best in the business\u201d (that was 50 years ago), and he\u2019s still performing today. He\u2019s Tony Bennett, the man who has now spanned several generations, dominates the Grammys, personifies \u201cliving legend,\u201d and totally owns the Great American Songbook.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s also one of my favorite performers.<\/p>\n
For years I called Tony Bennett a \u201cballpark singer.\u201d That is, he\u2019s in the same ballpark as Frank Sinatra. Crosby, Como, Dean Martin, Nat King Cole: these are ballpark singers. Not Tony Bennett. He\u2019s in a park all his own.<\/p>\n
From the big-voiced balladeer of the 1950s to the old master of today, Tony Bennett\u2019s style and voice are unmistakable in any era. Like many people my age, I first became aware of Tony Bennett from the \u201cunplugged\u201d show and accompanying album he did for MTV in 1994. That was about the 17th<\/sup> time Mr. Bennett had reinvented himself, and for the most part this one stuck. He finally found it at age 68. Hard to believe that was almost 25 years ago. For all the great records he made with Count Basie or with philharmonic orchestras in the \u201960s and \u201970s, there is no Tony Bennett better than Tony Bennett with piano, bass, and drums. Maybe guitar too. This is why, to me, Tony Bennett has simply gotten better and better through the years. I prefer his voice at 90 to his voice at 25, and I I mean that in every sense of the word.<\/p>\n It goes beyond saying that Mr. Bennett is a legendary singer. He is also an accomplished painter, and sells artwork on more than just his name alone. He\u2019s a humanitarian, and has championed civil rights causes since the \u201950s, before every pop artist tried to do so. The money he\u2019s raised for charity is probably into the tens of millions. After all, they don\u2019t call him Tony Benefit for nothing.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve had the Benefit of seeing the man in concert twice, once in 2000 and once in 2007. Both times I\u2019ve thought walking in that yup, this is it, this is Tony\u2019s last tour.<\/p>\n Nope. The man is unstoppable. Both times I walked out of the theatre thinking: this man will go on forever.<\/p>\n And at 90, he\u2019s in a ballpark all his own.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Another legend and world icon turns 90 today. Frank Sinatra once called him \u201cthe best in the business\u201d (that was 50 years ago), and he\u2019s still performing today. He\u2019s Tony Bennett, the man who has now spanned several generations, dominates … Continue reading