by john fulmer the sun herald
TRANSCRIPT
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8/14/2019 By John Fulmer the Sun Herald
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INCONCERT
WHO: Tony Bennett
WHAT: Benefit Concert for the Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra
WHERE: iloxi Grand The tre
WHEN: 8 p.m. May 11
COST: $50 floor; $40 balcony
TICKETS: (800) WIN-2-WIN icketmaster (800) 409-9959
DETAILS: Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra 875-2310
TONYBennettson thephone. The voiceis unmistakable. Smokey, just a tadlike sandpaper. But somehow stillsmooth.
And sleepy. Its noon but hes just awakened
in his room at the Gold Strike Casino in Tunica
where hes playing a date. Were doing an interview
or Bennetts May 11 concert at the Biloxi Grand
Theatre, a benefit for the Gulf Coast SymphonyOrchestra.
Im in Missis-
sippi, he says and his
voice implies that hes
just around the corner.
That distances between
people are small.
He sounds amazed,
oo, at what hes
ound here. He starts
alking about the
number and size of
asinos in Tunica. Theyre huge. Its pretty wild.
Bennett explains that his son Danny, whos alsohis manager, got him the date: He always puts me
in the best places.
Lest you think that a father hiring a son as
manager is a blatant case of nepotism, consider that
Danny Bennett engineered an incredible marketing
job by turning his 72 year-old father into an MTV
icon. Bennett did his part, too. As his popularity
surged, he remained cool without turning into a
parody of an aging hipster.
This was, after all, a man who in 1971 walked away
rom a 20-year relationship with Columbia Records.
Bennett refused to sing rock, disco or country. In 1979,
Danny Bennett took over and re-signed his father to
Columbia a few years later.But Bennett, whod always toured, was a long way
rom the kind of hit records -- ony Bennett: M V
Unplugged and Perfectly Frank -- that hes scored
with recently.
But dont call it a comeback. Bennett wont attach
hat word to his recent run of success. Call it faith.
Bennett stuck with Gershwin and Cole Porter when
some of his contemporaries embarrassed themselves
by following trends.
Bennetts 90s success story has often been told,
By John Fulmer
THE SUN HERALD
SINGER TO
JAZZ UP
GRAND
BENEFIT
Bennettdiction
See Be nett, page H4
SonyRecords
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8/14/2019 By John Fulmer the Sun Herald
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and its one that, at first glance, defies explana-
tion. Other singers of his generation remained
true to jazz and standards, but Bennett seemed
destined to carry the flame.
In fact, destiny, is a word that Bennett uses
often. He uses it to describe Billie Holiday, one
of three artists, along with Edith Piaf and Hank
Williams, he mentions in the same breath.
Somehow they became autobiographical.
Listening to them was like reading a biography.
She sang songs that explained herself, he says.
They were true artists. They had a true
destiny, unlike artists who were just trying to
sell something.
On Holiday, Bennetts third tribute album
-- his priors were Sinatra and Fred Astaire -- is
a paean to a singer he first met in a Philadelphia
nightclub some 40 years ago. He was an up-and-
comer with a string of hits (I was the Madonna
of my day, he says) and Holiday asked him to
sing.
But my table discouraged me, he says. Its
a shame, something I always regretted. We could
have a beautiful jam session.
Bennett, a career optimist, sees a silver lin-
ing in Holidays tragic life. In the late 40s and
early 50s, Bennett studied New Yorks 52nd
Street jazz scene and recalls a different Holi-
day, a singer who hi t her peak before a well-
documented fall into drugs and dissolution.
When she was young, she sang a lot of
optimistic, happy songs, says Bennett. His voice
raises somewhat in anger or frustration as he
notes the skewed media focus on Holidays life.
They say the same thing about Frank Sina-
tra, that hes on his deathbed. Franks my best
friend, and I can tell you hes in a mellow mood
and hes going to live a long time, Bennett says.
Its tragic. hey just do this to sell papers.
Bennett remembers a Billie Holiday stroll-
ing into a club and jamming with other larger-
than-life artists -- folks like Basie, Lester Young,
George Shearing and Stan Getz. It was no
contest, Bennett says. A carnival-sized crowd
gathered on the sidewalk to hear Lady Day.
When Billie showed up there would be an
overflow, it was like Mardi Gras, says Bennett.
On this latest album, Bennett finally gets a
chance to duet with Holiday. Through studio magic,
Bennett and Holiday are reunited on her signature
song, God Bless the Child. Super producer Phil
Ramone found an old recording of Holiday and
Basie and spliced Bennett in; Bennett says he was
pleased with the results and that it brought back
some old memories.
I liked it very much. I was the first white singer
to sing with Count Basie, he said. Doing this
together was dynamite.
Perhaps thats what Bennett means by destiny:
to be part of an artistic reunion that had to wait 40
years. It seems that Bennetts life follows the old
adage that good things come to those who wait.
But it still doesnt explain Bennetts cross-gen-
erational appeal. Why is he hot and Perry Como a
wet match? Why is Bennett cool and why was Pat
Boone never cool? What made Bennett a hit for 50
years?
Elizabeth Raley, a board member with the
Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra and community
relations representative with the Grand, says the
symphony wanted an upscale performer, a big-
name draw.
Last year, they booked Natalie Cole for the sym
phony benefit. Cole did two-nights and the Grand
and the symphony split the proceeds. hey wanted
a similar deal this year.
ony Bennetts name came up. Raley says: We
wanted him real bad. But he was so expensive,
says Raley and Bennett would only book for one
night. Still, they grabbed him.
`The Grand booked him for us, but its totally a
symphony event, says Raley.
Despite Bennetts big price tag, the symphony
hopes to get from $20,000 to $25,000 through its
sponsorships. Raley says the $1,500 sponsorships
have sold out and only three 500 sponsorships
remain. As of last week, about 300 individual seats
were unsold, but Raley is absolutely sure of a sell
ou .
Raley says the big question was whether the or-
chestra would back Bennett, but synchronizing thedates and setting up rehearsals would have been too
difficult, she says, and Bennett will perform with his
own ensemble.
In the end, Raley has the answer for that old
Bennett magic.
Tony Bennett is, like, hot, said Raley.
A Wall Street Journal article, The Tony Bennett Factor, offers a clue to the singers newfound popularity. The author, MarianneM. Jennings, studied business longevity, looking into eight companies that had paid investment dividends for 100 years or more.he applied the principals of their business success to Bennett :
hey were low-cost producers. (All Mr. Bennett needs are a microphone and a pianist to make music.)
Continuity and stability (Mr. Bennett has used the same musical directorRalph Sharonfor nearly 30 years.)
Customer service. (Mr. Bennett has always spent time on the road in concert, in direct contact with audiencesno mega tours, just constant gigs.)
They knew their strengths and stuck with them (Mr. Bennett never performed without singing `I Wanna Be Around, Jennings said.)
Integrity (Mr. Bennett has never made a bad recording or disappointed an audience during a live performance.)
Thats all true, but could be said of other performers as well. When figuring the Tony Bennett factor, figure in the intangible. Call it class, call it soul, call it style.Whatever you call it, Bennetts got it. And it doesnt come cheap. Bennett will command $75,000 for his show at the Grand.
BENNETT FROMPAGE H1
Somehow they becameautobiographical. Listening
to them was like reading a
biography. She sang songs
that explained herself. They
were true artists. They had
a true destiny, unlike artists
who were just trying to sell
something.
Tony Bennetton Billie
Holiday, Hank Williams and
Edith Piaf