[Dixielandjazz] Tony Bennett and the Grammys

[Robert Ringwald]

Tony Bennett: The Gold Standard of Pop Standards
by Brad Wheeler
Toronto Globe and Mail, February 11, 2012
Here's the funny thing about the Grammy for traditional pop singing: The category
name changes -- it's happened three times since the award's inception in 1992 --
but the winner, not so much. Tony Bennett, who left his heart in San Francisco, hoards
the statuettes in Los Angeles. Ten years out of the category's 20, he's walked off
with the honours -- nine times for his baby, presumably, and one more for the road.
"God bless him," Paul Anka told The Globe and Mail recently, about Bennett. "He's
been doing the same thing for 50 years -- same goddamn songs, same trio. He doesn't
have to change a damn thing, because everybody keeps discovering him."
The conventional wisdom is that you can't stop Bennett; you can only hope to contain
him. On Sunday, it's his Duets II album that's up for best traditional pop vocal
album (formerly best traditional pop vocal performance and, before that, best traditional
pop performance).
When it comes to traditional-song packaging, Bennett is like Forrest Gump's shrimp-obsessed
army buddy, who knew every which way to cook those things. Bennett has won for: a
salute to Frank Sinatra; a Fred Astaire tribute; an MTV unplugged performance; a
Billie Holiday homage; a Duke Ellington disc; a blues-duet collection; a collaboration
with k.d. lang; an LP of romantic fare; another duets disc; and one celebration of
female singers that beat out, ironically, albums by Rosemary Clooney, Natalie Cole,
Liza Minnelli and Bernadette Peters.
Talk about your ladies singing the blues.
This year, some crooners and chanteuses are taking a different strategy: Michael
Buble (a three-time winner) and Natalie Cole (two times a victor) both appear on
Bennett's Duets II. If you can't beat him, join him.


--Bob Ringwald
www.ringwald.com
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