"  Where Do You Start ?"    Ending a long-term love relationship has a sadness all its own Whatever the reasons, there will always be vestigial remains of the things that were delightfully shared by both partners. The music is by the great Johnny Mandel, with lyrics by Allan & Marilyn Bergman, Sung with such sincerity and conviction by TonyBennett, "
 "Where Do You Start " tells the tale of the kinds of things that would run through one's mind during the period of planned separation After listing the many different things that could come to mind, it concludes with these words:

               " And though I don't know where
                                And don't know when
                  I'll find myself in love again
                  I promise there will always be
                  A little place no one can see
                  A tiny part deep in my heart
                   That stays in love with you."

https://youtu.be/uGG3fbOtAKg 
             

"  You Are There "   This is a reflective and poignant song for someone who has lost a loved one still imagines that person is  somehow still around. It may only be a fleeting moment but it certainly has a profound effect whenever it may occur.
The singer is new to me. Roseanna Vitreo conveys the emotions felt during such intervals with a lovely melody by Johnny Mandel and lyrics by Dave Fishburg. The piano  accompaniment by KennyWerner is lush and romantic and  in complete accord with the singer. The song may describe similar moments in one's own life.

 https://youtu.be/ZScfz65CrQc

" Loving You" Complete, unrestricted love. For the musical " Passion", Stephan Sondheim wrote Loving You. It is a serious dramatic offer of devotion that indicates such passion in " It' Who I am, It's why I live" and ends  convincingly with " And I would die for you ! "  Such heightened emotion is quite rare in love songs and can be sung by either a male or female. I would hazard a guess that any woman would be thrilled by having such words sung to them. ( Most men , like myself, would be unable to express their feelings in so naked a manner.) The melody itself is quite entrancing.
Michael Ball, in a live concert, sings the words with great passion and conviction in a perfect singing/acting performance.
He should make you a believer . I hope you agree. 

https://youtu.be/wjW2o56NwAM

" Sure Thing "  Music by Jerome Kern, words by Ira Gershwin. I have a story to tell regarding this song. On a busy weekday, I was driving on Toronto's broad Avenue Road when this song came on my radio. The voice of Diane Schuur was so clear, natural and convincing that, after 8 bars,  I dangerously pulled over to the side of the busy road to hear the rest of the song. That was 25 years ago but the memory still burns brightly. There is so much great honesty, clarity and artistry in her performance that it never ceases to amaze me. Such is the power of song . That is why I have devoted the last ten year of my life to documenting and sharing my passion with people all over the world thru the miracle of the internet.

 https://youtu.be/satH82RCmMY

" SPEAK LOW "  A dramatic love song by Kurt Weill with lyrics by Ogen Nash from 1943's "One Touch of Venus."  It's sung here with the magnificent voice of Dianne Reeves, a  jazz diva indebted to the vocal influences of Sara Vaughan & Ella Fitzgerald.

https://youtu.be/ZmsSB9-XYk4 

"  Where is the one ?"  I'm sure that everyone, while growing up and even into adulthood, will wonder who might eventually be that great lover, partner or spouse. Some may have very specific criteria. Others may wait for that unexpected bolt of lighting " when your heart stood still."_This song by Alec Wilder explores such personal musings while Sinatra gives a very convincing performance of the words as well as the melody.

https://youtu.be/4eKejIx1qAs

" And then my heart stood still "  Much has been written about L0ve at First Sight. Whether it is hopeless aspiration or something very real, Rodgers & Hart explore the power of such a possibility in one's life. Judging from the power and conviction in Frank Sinatra's performance, one can think that he believed in the prospect of being smitten by the prospect of love at first sight.

 https://youtu.be/NT73sJou_Js

" Long Ago & Far Away"  An Academy Award- winning song with lyrics by Ira Gershwin. In this case, the music was not by brother George but from Jerome Kern, the Godfather of The Great American Songbook. It is a stunning performance by Maureen  McGovern, she of the powerful four octave vocal range, supported by a lush string orchestra.

 https://youtu.be/qV00jjX3L2E

" Manhattan"  Rodgers & Hart's love poem to the Big Apple tours so many different aspects of Gotham. There are excellent photos to enhance Lorenz Hart's witty lyrics and clever rhymes.
Singer Mary Cleee Harran has the right, light touch to capture the spirit of Manhattan as it was when the song was written.

 https://youtu.be/VM2i_m4JJAs

" America The Beautiful" If one despairs of the current state of affairs, remember the words of Katherine Lee Bates, written after visiting Pikes Peak & inspiring her to write 
   America, America, God shed his grace on thee
  And crown thy good  WITH BROTHERHOOD 
  From sea to shining sea. 
   Listen to a marvellous musical hymn to the original dream of America. Ruby Braff's cornet is like a modern day Gabriel , soaring majestically over Dick Hyman's pipe organ.
Braff was a direct descendant of Louis Armstrong and he sounds like the young
 Armstrong at his most powerful playing. 
 I always get a musical thrill  no matter how
 many times I hear this inspirational song.

https://youtu.be/Uot1HrVHG_8 

 

" The Bandit of Brazil"  Two friends of mine from Michigan State were today lauding the virtues of this pop song from the 50's. I admit to being a musical snob reared on classical music, jazz and The Great American Songbook. This song is hardly representative of Classic American Popular Song ( from Jerome Kern to Stephen Sondheim)
However, for Turf Kauffman who has an encyclopedic knowledge of the '50's commercial pop era and David Stone who still has visceral memories of growing up in NYC listening to the Top 50, I post the only version I could find. It is a very strange collaboration between Stan Kenton, he of the screaming modern Big Band jazz arrangements and Tex Ritter, the cowboy singer who I believe also sang the title song from High Noon. There is a honesty to the lyrics lionizing that Bandit from Brazil who robbed a rich ranchero.

https://youtu.be/hr9SkFgyG5Q

" I'' ll Be Around "  A song by Alec Wilder states that people will wait for that special someone who , for now, may be involved with another person. But it bravely ends with the belief that "I'll Be Around when he/she is gone. " Sung by Carol Welsman, her performance is so authentic I asked her if there was an autobiographical aspect influencing her performance. ? She did state that " I think in everyone's life there is a person who you'd wait around for on some level and I did have a personal story from which to draw." That is also true for me personally.
Carol's performance is every bit as good as those recorded byFrank Sinatra, Tony Bennett and Mel Torme and , somehow, conveying even greater  intense emotion.
Guido Basso's flugelhorn accompaniment is equally impassioned and lyrical, so characteristic of his melodic genius.

https://youtu.be/u-bzRePbk4g

" PENSATIVA"   A wonderful bossa nova arrangement  of a Clare Fischer song. It is played by The Boss Brass with an arrangement by an old high school friend Rick Wilkins, still living InToronto. Rick also takes a tenor solo in addition to the wonderful guitar of Ed Bickert and a great ballad flugelhorn solo by Guido Basso.
 The brass section ,near the end, is divided into upper and lower segments which do musical battle that is quite exhilarating.

 https://youtu.be/PSJ6zhHD8c0

Haunted Heart:  A most deeply felt song by Arthur Schwartz  with insightful lyrics by Howard Dietz. One must listen attentively to grasp the poignancy of the message as it relates the lasting memory of a romance gone astray. This is not background music.
Sung by Jane Monheit backed by a rich string based arrangement of Allan Broadbent.
"  Be still, My Haunted Heart !"

https://youtu.be/23dTy9rn0Rc 

I Get A Kick Ought of: Cole Porter often had an impish and saucy sense of humour. Sinatra had a similar disposition and Porter & Sinatra are a perfect combination in " I Get A Kick Ought of You"  again with a swinging Nelson Riddle arrangement. Franks' clever articulation on "Fab  u lous ' face and " Ter if ic ly" too demonstrate his clever affinity and love of language.

 https://youtu.be/wSrHvNr8QQQ

Someone to watch over me. Ella Fitzgerald sings a memorable Gershwin Brothers song with a sensitive arrangement by the great Nelson Riddle but this time enhanced by The London Symphony orchestra. Listen to the purity of Ella's voice and a performance that makes Ira Gershwin's words so believable and tender.


https://youtu.be/J94EWJ_sT2o