The good life

"Honored with countless awards, including eight Grammys, and with more than ninety albums to his credit (more than thirty million sold for the Columbia label alone), no other recording artist has attained Bennett's stature - or garnered the half-century of memories shared in The Good Life. From Sinatra, Judy Garland and Ella Fitzgerald, to k.d. lang and Elvis Costello, Bennett shares his unique takes on the most fascinating talents of our time. Here is the story of his lifelong love affair with art, music, and performing - from his childhood in Depression-era Queens, where opera and Billie Holiday flowed freely; to his stint as a singing waiter; to soaking up the New York jazz scene in the 1940s. With crisp wit and firmly grounded emotion, Bennett captures the people and places that shaped his sublime performances. The dozens of hits he introduced to the great American songbook, including "Because of You," "Rags to Riches," "Cold, Cold Heart," and his signature song, "I Left My Heart in San Francisco," remain a legacy of truth and beauty for the classic art of intimate singing.". "In this self-portrait, we get to know Tony Bennett as he really is: an unpretentious and thoughtful human being. His key to success is consistency: His constant dedication in his pursuit of excellence has never wavered, despite the trials and tribulations one can encounter when placing integrity above all else. Through all of his personal and artistic challenges, he has remained, in his own words, "a humanist" whose Zen-like philosophy of life is an inspiration for all ages. Like the fascinating story he shares in The Good Life, Tony Bennett is one of a kind, an American treasure, an enduring artist seasoned with experience and self-knowledge, and a true class act."--BOOK JACKET.