Tony Bennett says Cdn. composer Farnon created ‘work of art’ on ‘Snowfall’

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This article was published 13/10/2008 (6502 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

TORONTO – Tony Bennett says it was the genius of the late Toronto-born composer Robert Farnon that led to his long break from producing Christmas albums.

Bennett’s new record “A Swingin’ Christmas,” being released this week, is just his second holiday album.

The first was’68’s “Snowfall: The Tony Bennett Christmas Album,” and the iconic crooner says the 40-year gap is a result of Farnon’s superb orchestrations on that disc.

“When I did (‘Snowfall’) it was such a work of art, as far as I was concerned, that when Columbia/Sony … would say to me every year, ‘You’ve got to do a Christmas album because that’s our season to really sell an album,’ I said, ‘No, no … that’s the album,’ you know, it was very complete,” Bennett, 82, said in a recent interview.

He explained that Farnon was widely revered in music circles and nicknamed “The Governor” by Frank Sinatra.

Bennett changed his mind about doing a second festive album earlier this year after his son/manager, Danny, proposed doing one that “isn’t as serious or religious as the first ‘Snowfall’ album.”

“He said, ‘Just a swingin’ album, let’s do one for parties … it’s such a festive time of the year. Just do an album that just has a good beat to it,”‘ Bennett said in his raspy New York accent, dressed to the nines in a slick, navy-blue pinstripe suit.

“A Swingin’ Christmas,” recorded onstage at the Bergen Performing Arts Center in New Jersey, comprises old favourites including “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” and “Winter Wonderland.”

The album reunites Bennett with the Count Basie Orchestra, with whom he performed in the’50s. Some of the orchestra members are the same ones Bennett recorded with back in the day, he said.

“I was the first white singer that ever sang (with them), when it was shocking to have a white artist with a black band,” said the balladeer, who has won 15 Grammy Awards.

“It was great, it worked right away, there wasn’t any problem at all but the corporations always questioned it because the black music never really sold down south in bigoted areas of the States and they would discourage it. They wouldn’t promote it because of sales.”

Of course, sales have been no problem since for the celebrated singer, born Anthony Dominick Benedetto in Queens, N.Y., in’26. With chart-toppers including “Because of You,” “Rags to Riches” and “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” Bennett has sold over 50 million records worldwide.

In recent years, he’s also churned out scores of duets with artists including Canada’s k.d. lang, Diana Krall and Michael Buble, as well as American pop star Christina Aguilera.

“She’s cute,” Bennett said, smiling, when Aguilera’s name was mentioned.

“When I first met her, I couldn’t believe it because she was so small and delicate, you know, and then she sings and it’s like a big voice like Ethel Merman and I said, ‘Wait a minute!”‘ he said with a chuckle.

The superstar singer has also collaborated with R&B great Stevie Wonder on the Grammy-winning “Duets – An American Classic,” and will team up with him again next year on a jazz album to be produced by Quincy Jones.

“We’re just sketching it out right now,” said Bennett, whose next Canadian tour date is Oct. 24 at Richmond, B.C.’s River Rock Casino Resort.

“We’ve been talking back and forth about doing some Stevie songs and Marvin Gaye songs, you know, ‘Save the Children’ – some of the songs that I introduced that became quite well known.”

To keep his vocals in tip-top shape, Bennett says he looks back to what his music teachers told him after he came out of the 63rd Infantry Division in the Second World War: “Not to compromise and just never sing a bad song.”

“It has to be highly intelligent, whether it’s lyric or musical, but together hopefully is the best example,” said Bennett.

“You have to stay in shape. To this day, I eat very good food, I exercise three times a week, I also play tennis. I’m in very good health as a result.”

Bennett has also painted since he was a child and still puts brush to canvas every day, producing works that have been bought by celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey, Donald Trump and Carol Burnett.

He says he was recently awestruck by Group of Seven paintings on display at the National Gallery in Ottawa.

“I couldn’t believe their technique,” said Bennett, who performed at the National Arts Centre earlier this month.

“They painted (in the early 20th century) and it was just so modern looking. See, if something is good, it’s always good. It doesn’t matter what the year is.”