SATURDAY'S SINGLES : TONY BENNETT and HUGH DOWNS

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Good morning gang and welcome back to Saturday's Singles. Yesterday (07/21/23) the world felt the sting of losing New York native, singer, painter, and Army Veteran, Tony Bennett. Our Hearts, Thoughts, and Prayers go out to his Fans, Friends, and Family. He was born Anthony Dominick Benedetto on August 3, 1926 to parents John Benedetto, a grocer,  and seamstress Anna Suraci. During the course of his 8decade career the 20 time Grammy award winner dabbled in traditional pop, show tunes, swing, jazz, easy listening, and big band. He had been battling Alzheimer's disease since 2016 and passed away July 21, 2023 at age 86. To honor his legacy, we find ourselves spinning "The Good Life". The song was written by French singer, guitarist, songwriter and actor, Sacha Distel, who passed away on this day in 2005, age 71. Bennett's version, recorded December 19, 1962 at the Columbia 30th Street Studios, in New York City, was released April 1963 on the Columbia label and produced by Ernest Altschuler. It peaked at #96 in Australia, #27 in the UK, #18 on the Hot 100, and #7 on the Easy Listening charts. It is b/w "Spring In Manhattan". The A side hails from Tony's 15th album, I Wanna Be Around... and it's B side,a non album single reached #92 on the Hot 100. 

Tony Bennett – vocals
Ralph Sharon – piano
Ralph Burns – arranger
Marty Manning – arranger, conductor

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We didn't want the week to get away without mentioning that this week is the 54th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission that resulted in the first man on the moon. The shuttle launched on July 16, 1969 and on July 20th Commander Neil Armstrong made history as the first human to set foot on the lunar surface. His pilot, Buzz Aldrin, was the second. The dou explored the surface for hours,  collecting 47.5 pounds of material to be taken back to earth. The third member of the crew, pilot Michael Collins, flew the module in lunar orbit. They returned to earth on July 24, following 8 days in space. We observe these dates by listening to commemorative 45 RPM of the First Man On The Moon July, 1969 narrated by Hugh Downs. The record was released in 1969 on the MGM label and sees Downs fly us down memory lane, beginning with JFK's Urgent National Needs speech, where he proclaimed his intention of seeing a man on the moon within the decade and culminating with Armstrong's "Giant leap for mankind" description. Our copy came from J.R.'s Junk Trunk and still has it's original picture sleeve. 

Narrated By – Hugh Downs

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