Cloud 7

WHAT NYMITH SAYS

One thing you can't fault Cloud 7 for is the backing band. Refer back to my In the Wee Small Hours review and then listen to this: tenor and alto sax, trumpet, piano, guitar, bass and drums. Not a blessed string in sight! Tony Bennett had a great deal of respect for jazz and his first album finds him seesawing between the sentimental crooning he'd made his living by and the new sophistication that would earn him artistic respect. As such it's best heard only by seasoned fans, because, to be frank, a lot of the songs here are sentimental drivel. This is the main problem and why Tony has never been considered "cool." He's a warm-hearted nice guy who likes tender, romantic songs. Is there anything wrong with that? Certainly not and anyway, this is leagues above what Frank Sinatra came up with that same year, so we should all praise him.

The good news is that Tony Bennett is an amazing singer. One gets the feeling all through Cloud 7 that he's holding himself back for the sake of the studio (had he performed 'Old Devil Moon' at Carnegie Hall he'd have increased the energy level tenfold) but even so you can tell what a powerful voice he had. Just listen to the way he sings that final "old devil moon/deep in your eyes/blinds me with LOOOVE!" and tell me you aren't impressed.

The ENERGY he had is what fully separates him from the crooners of yore. Possibly as a result of his Italian heritage, Bennett had this theatrical delivery that brought the emotional character of the song to the forefront. He loved the Great American Songbook and sought (still seeks, by the sound of it) to bring it to life for his audience. The song could be shallow as a birdbath and Tony would still treat it like an ocean. Such a tactic didn't always avail him of good results, mind, but you can't fault him for a lackluster performance.

Obviously, if you compare him to rock and folk singers, he sounds as mannered as everybody else from the era. You have to study what he was competing against. Listen to Sinatra's 'Mood Indigo' or Fitzgerald's 'But Not for Me.' Sad but contained. Polite. Then listen to the way Bennett does 'I Fall in Love Too Easily' - that haunting hum and then as he sings he sounds near tears at more than one point. This is simply unheard of among Songbook interpreters.

In a way, that first song is the best but suffice to say, when the lyric is full-blown "tragic"  Bennett's interpretation is fabulous ('While the Music Plays On'). When the lyric is more about "ambivalence" the whole shebang becomes almost unbearably wishy-washy - as with 'My Heart Tells Me (Should I Believe My Heart).' Just the title should tell you that it's not going to be a classic. However, he only commits one embarrassing lapse of taste on the ten-song record: 'Give Me the Simple Life' is indeed "corny and seedy," and Tony, you wear a suit on stage - you have NO business singing this song. Nothing else approaches this level of corn though.

The only other disappointment in Cloud 7 is a lack of strong melodies. 'My Reverie?' 'Love Letters?' Typical showtune fluff. There are only four songs with a quick tempo, one of which is 'Give Me the Simple Life' (and a plaid shirt, and a guitar, and a Woody Guthrie song instead) and another ('My Baby Just Cares For Me') is taken at an oddly slow pace for an upbeat song (as with 'Old Devil Moon' there's that nagging sense of Tony holding himself back in the studio). Luckily, the fourth tune nails it: 'I Can't Believe That You're in Love with Me' is sung in charming style and forms a great refresher coming in near the end of the album.

You have to be a real Bennett aficionado to love this record but taken in context of the year 1955 it is a great step in the right direction, favouring a direct emotional approach and a stripped-down, classy jazz backing over polite mannerism and orchestral syrup. Unfortunately, the emergence of rock and roll in the following year prevented anyone from really noticing and the Great American Songbook began its decline.

WHAT TICHARU SAYS

I usually want to bail pretty quickly with singers that are overly sentimental and weepy. I guess I have a greater tolerance for Tony Bennett because of his voice. Unique, powerful, expressive. He's a classic right from the start.

Tony seemed to have defined himself rather completely on his first album. Cloud 7 has everything you'd expect from a Tony Bennett album, classic songs, smart jazz combo, arrangements that compliment the singer. No grandstanding soloist here, it's not that kind of record and Tony never really goes mad either, no caterwauling, no endless repeating 3 note chorus... wait, I've jumped ahead 60 years!

If you like singers with great voices and nice songs that don't overstay their welcome and if like me your ears hurt from the constant thump of the modern musical atrocity exhibition. Do yourself a favour and check out this sparkling gem from 1955. Tony Bennett's Cloud 7 (coming to an iPOD near you!)