The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album - Tony Bennett (1LP Vinyl) [Original Jazz Classics]

The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album by Tony Bennett.

Some collaborations feel less like a session and more like a meeting of two minds who had been circling one another for years, waiting for the right room. "The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album" is exactly that kind of encounter. Recorded at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, California, over four days in June 1975, it pairs one of the most beloved voices in American song with one of the most searching pianists jazz has ever produced. There is no rhythm section here to hide behind, no orchestra to cushion the sound; just voice and piano, exposed and intimate.

The program leans into ballads and standards that reward this kind of stripped down attention. The A side opens with "Young and Foolish" and moves through "The Touch of Your Lips," "Some Other Time," "When in Rome," and "We'll Be Together Again," each one a study in restraint and phrasing. The chemistry between the two players is unmistakable, with Bennett shaping every lyric while Evans answers in the harmonic language that made him a legend.

The B side deepens the mood, beginning with "My Foolish Heart" and settling into Evans' own "Waltz for Debby," a piece so closely associated with the pianist that hearing Bennett sing over it feels like a rare gift. "But Beautiful" and the Oscar winning "Days of Wine and Roses" close the record, leaving the listener suspended in that quiet, unhurried space the two men built together across these nine songs.

Behind the music sits a formidable production team. Helen Keane produced the session, with Orrin Keepnews serving as executive producer and Don Cody handling the engineering. The visual presentation was overseen by Phil Carroll on art direction, with cover photography by Phil Bray and back cover photography by Tom Vano, framing this meeting of artists with the elegance it deserves.

This particular pressing brings the recording forward with genuine audiophile care. The all analog mastering was done from the original tapes by Kevin Gray, who also cut the lacquer, ensuring that the natural warmth of Bennett's voice and the delicacy of Evans' touch carry through to the grooves. The runouts are etched, a mark of the attention paid at every stage.

Issued with a 2023 phonogram date and a 1975 copyright by Craft Recordings, manufactured and distributed by Concord and made in the U.S.A., this edition honors a session that has only grown in stature over the decades. For anyone drawn to the space between jazz and the great American songbook, it remains an essential document of two masters listening closely to one another.

Pressing Details:
Track Listing:
A1. Young and Foolish
A2. The Touch of Your Lips
A3. Some Other Time
A4. When in Rome
A5. We'll Be Together Again
B1. My Foolish Heart
B2. Waltz for Debby
B3. But Beautiful
B4. Days of Wine and Roses

Credits:
Phil Carroll - Art Direction
Don Cody - Engineer
Orrin Keepnews - Executive-Producer
Kevin Gray - Lacquer Cut By
Kevin Gray - Lacquer Cut By
Kevin Gray - Mastered By [All-analog Mastering From The Original Tapes By]
Tom Vano - Photography By [Back Cover Photo], Cover [Back Cover Photo]
Phil Bray - Photography By [Cover Photo], Cover [Cover Photo]
Bill Evans - Piano
Helen Keane - Producer [Produced By]
Tony Bennett - Vocals

Notes:
Recorded at Fantasy Studios, Berkeley, Ca.; June 10-13, 1975.

℗ 2023 & © 1975 Craft Recordings.
Manufactured and Distributed by Concord.
Made in U.S.A.

Runouts are etched.

Artist: Tony Bennett

Supporting Artists: Bill Evans

Format: 1LP

Genre: Jazz

Label: Craft Recordings

Catalog Number: CR00613

Series: Original Jazz Classics

Release Year: 2023

Country: United States

Condition: Sealed (New)