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Tony Bennett expects Lady Gaga to be "as big as Elvis"
As he prepares for the September 20 release of his "Duets II" album, Tony Bennett promises "this
will be the last one". But didn't he say that when he released the original "Duets: An
American Classic" in 2006? "Well, I had no idea the first one was going to be that big,"
Bennett tells Billboard.com.
The first "Duets" debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and sold more than three million
copies worldwide. "The sales were so phenomenal (for 'Duets') that I was almost strangled
by Sony Columbia. Actually, they said, 'Please do another one like that.' They were very
nice about it. But I won't do another one."
"Duets II" pairs Bennett with another all-star cast of partners, ranging from icons (Aretha
Franklin, Willie Nelson, Andrea Bocelli) to upstarts (Lady Gaga, Norah Jones, Josh Groban,
John Mayer, Carrie Underwood) and those in between, including Natalie Cole, Mariah Carey,
Sheryl Crow and others. But even with that potent lineup, the album also has additional
notoriety for Bennett's rendition of "Body and Soul" with the late Amy Winehouse. He's now
planning to release the song as the album's second single - following "Don't Get Around
Much Anymore" with Michael Buble - in September, with proceeds likely earmarked for the
foundation Winehouse's family is setting up in her name to help young people in need of
medical or financial assistance.
"It's on film... and I think it will surprise everybody as to how well we ended up getting
along," says Bennett, who recorded with Winehouse at EMI's Abbey Road studios in London.
"She was a little apprehensive about how to go about it, and I said to her, 'I may be
wrong, but it sounds like you're influenced by Dinah Washington,' and that just blew
her mind. She just said, 'Oh my God, you mean you can actually hear that? She's my idol!'
And that relaxed her, and that's the record we ended up making."
Bennett says he had provided some counsel to Winehouse prior to the recording sessions,
when she and her father, Mitch Winehouse, came to see him perform at London's Royal Albert
Hall. "I was convinced I would be able to help her and talk her out of... taking drugs,"
he notes, adding that the foundation is "a great way to turn something positive out of
this."
Bennett acknowledges that the Lady Gaga duet on "The Lady is a Tramp" also seems out of
left field but proclaims that "I never met a more talented person in my life. I think
she's going to become as big as Elvis Presley." Bennett says John Mayer, who joins him on
"One For My Baby", is "a very talented guy and a great blues singer," and joining forces
with Franklin for "How Do You Keep the Music Playing" was "just great. She's in top shape
after her recent surgery - looks great, sounds great. She knew exactly what to do."
Ultimately, Bennett says, all of his duet partners came to the project in top form. "I
can't tell you how professional every one of them was, and how they worked and memorized
and knew what they were going to do," he says. "And it shows up on the record, you know?
You can hear them performing very well for us." All of the sessions were filmed and will
be released as both online content as well as a making-of documentary, while Bennett's
son and manager Danny is also working on a feature film called "The Zen of Tony Bennett"
that he says is "less a making-of and more Tony's philosophy, looking at a 60-year
career in the context of this new project. We captured all these wonderful conversations
between (the singers) and Tony talking about music and art and family. It's going to be
a very in-depth film."
Bennett, who celebrated his 85th birthday on August 3, is preparing for some special shows
in the coming weeks. He'll play the Metropolitan Opera House in New York on September 18
and the Staples Center in Los Angeles on September 24, both of which are expected to
feature guests from his pair of "Duets" albums. A large-scale, career-spanning box set,
meanwhile, is due out this fall.
(Billboard)
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