Tony Bennett

Desert Island Discs

BBC

Society & Culture, Music Commentary, Music, Personal Journals

4.4 • 13.7K Ratings

🗓️ 4 January 1987

⏱️ 33 minutes

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Summary

The son of Italian immigrants, Antony Benedetto started singing competitively with his brother and earned a living as a singing waiter in restaurants in New York while at art school. After singing in American military bands during the Second World War, he returned to New York, where he had his first hit with Because of You in 1951. Since then he has established himself as one of the most popular jazz singers of his generation and has worked with Count Basie, Duke Ellington and Woody Herman among others. In conversation with Michael Parkinson, he talks about his life and work, and chooses the eight discs he would take to the mythical island.

[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]

Favourite track: Don't Blame Me by Art Tatum Book: Crime & Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky Luxury: Suit

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, I'm Kirstie Young, and this is a podcast from the Desert Island Discs Archive.
0:05.0	For Wright's reasons, we've had to shorten the music.
0:08.0	The program was originally broadcast in 1987,
0:11.0	and the presenter was Michael Parkinson. He has a voice as warm and inviting as a
0:33.0	cold winter day. That's how one critic described the singing style of our castaway.
0:37.0	Praxinata, who knows about these things, was more direct.
0:40.0	He called him the best singer in the business.
0:43.0	He was born Anthony Dominic Benedetto in New York City.
0:47.0	It was Bob Hope who told him to change his name to Tony Bennett.
0:51.0	Tony welcome.
0:52.0	What kind of a world was Antonio Dominic Benedetto born into?
0:57.0	Well, it was right at the beginning of the Franklin Delano Roosevelt era coming up out of the Depression and it was in a town
1:07.0	called Astoria outside of New York City and about 15 minutes away from New York City, a suburban part of New York City.
1:16.0	I had a very warm upbringing because I had a beautiful father and mother and sister and brother and we were all very close and all our relatives were close.
1:26.0	You'd be very poor though, I imagine...
1:28.0	Oh yes, well the whole country was at that time.
1:30.0	But there's no sense of deprivation at all.
1:32.0	I mean you didn't feel that you were underprivileged and
1:36.3	Well I felt the fright of it only the vibrations of it and my family kind of kept it from me but we had a very warm family and
1:45.8	We were very together
1:48.2	Because your father died when you were young didn't he? Yes nine years old so your brought the family. What does she do to support the family?
1:54.3	Well, she was a seamstress and a magnificent motivator and wonderful person.
	...

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