Tony Bennett is a living legend. And at the ripe age of 90 he's amazingly still going strong and touring the world. Alongside his daughter, Antonia, who opens the show with a short set and his incredibly talented quartet, Bennett is still pleasing audiences as much as ever.
An Evening with Tony Bennett, as the tour is so aptly titled, made a stop at Nashville’s Schermerhorn Symphony Center. Monday's set was the first night of two performances for the remarkable crooner.
As if having 17 Grammy awards wasn't impressive enough, Bennett has a career that spans over six decades. He has mixed and mingled with everyone from Fred Astaire to Amy Winehouse, Lady Gaga to Martin Luther King Jr., and built an impressive catalogue of hits – including “Steppin’ Out with My Baby,” “Rags to Riches,” “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” and many more.
It'd be hard to name a more enduring live performance. Standing before the packed house was a man that has poured a lifetime, a very long one at that, into a career built on a true passion. The love and energy could easily be felt through each smile and thumbs up flashed at the audience.
Expecting a potentially mediocre vocal display, I was even more shocked when he belted the last lines of the opening tune which kicked off a wonderful night of classics.
Bennett's voice has remained impervious to the tolls that time typically has on artists. His movement was tamed throughout most of the show, but he even danced about the stage during the particularly upbeat songs.
The tour will continue throughout the rest of 2016, and has dates already scheduled through April 2017.