Tony Bennett Sets Marathon On-Line Fan Event Schedule For Tuesday, October 8

NEW YORK, Oct. 3, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Tony Bennett invites his fans to join him online for an all-day series of interactive events celebrating the long-awaited release of Tony Bennett Live At The Sahara: Las Vegas, 1964 on Tuesday, October 8.

With his entire Columbia Records catalog--including Tony Bennett Live At The Sahara: Las Vegas, 1964--available digitally for the first time, Tony will video chat with fans in real-time on HuffPost Live, participate in an open forum Q&A on Twitter, answer Facebook questions and more during an epic day in the online world.

The kick off begins at 11:45am ET with a live interview on The Huffington Post's live-streaming network, HuffPost Live (www.HuffPostLive.com), where fans from around the world can engage with Tony in real-time via Google+Hangout or Skype, or leave text or video comments on the HuffPost Live platform that will be incorporated into the live conversation. Follow the event of the day and live stream of comments and questions on Digital.TonyBennett.com.

The 17-time Grammy winner is asking fans to submit their questions now through Facebook and Twitter using hashtag #AskTony and #TonyDigitalDay.

Tony Bennett's online celebration coincides with the long-awaited first-time stand-alone release of Tony Bennett Live At The Sahara: Las Vegas, 1964, an era-defining concert recording, on Tuesday, October 8, 2013.  Available for pre-order now at iTunes.com/TonyBennett.

Tony will also be performing on The Today Show and Rachael Ray in support of the album and iTunes catalog launch.

Tony Bennett's fabled Tony Bennett Live At The Sahara: Las Vegas, 1964 performance was originally recorded on April 8, 1964, by Tony's longtime recording engineer Frank Laico, for a Columbia Records concert album.  Shelved for decades, Bennett's epochal '64 Vegas concert recording first materialized as part of the monumental Tony Bennett - The Complete Collection released in celebration of the artist's 85th birthday in 2011 and has never been available on its own.   The New York Times recently commented on Bennett's illustrious career stating, "We aren't likely to see a recording career like this again."

Tony Bennett Live At The Sahara: Las Vegas, 1964 puts the listener ringside for an extraordinary concert at the Sahara's legendary Congo Room in Vegas during the swinging 1960s, where a master performer is laying down an epic set for both the room and the ages.  "Tony was in a dark suit and black bow tie, standing before a shimmering gold curtain with backing by his forever pianist and arranger, Ralph Sharon; Ralph's bassist Hal Gaylord; Ralph's drummer Billy Exiner; and the Louis Basil orchestra," wrote Bob Sullivan in new liner notes for Tony Bennett Live At The Sahara: Las Vegas, 1964. "If you were anywhere else in Las Vegas that night, you were missing it."

The Sahara marquee promised "The Moment of Truth" and Bennett bookended his concert with performances of a song by that name, but it's the show itself that delivers electrifying non-stop entertainment across the album's 24 tracks, which include the classics "Chicago (That Toddlin' Town)," "One For My Baby (And One More For The Road)," "Ain't Misbehavin'," "Lullaby Of Broadway," "From This Moment On," "This Could Be The Start Of Something Big" and, an emotional interpretation of Tony's signature "I Left My Heart In San Francisco."

Tony Bennett returns to Radio City Music Hall on Friday, October 11 for his first concert at the fabled New York venue since 2007.                                             

(CD Mini and archival photos of Tony Bennett available upon request)

Tony Bennett - Live at the Sahara - Las Vegas 1964

1. Overture: The Moment of Truth
2. This Could Be The Start of Something Big
3. It's a Sin to Tell a Lie
4. Ain't Misbehavin'
5. Parody: Rags to Riches
6. Keep Smiling At Trouble (Trouble's A Bubble)
7. Time After Time
8. Sing You Sinners
9. One For My Baby (And One More For The Road)
10. The Rules of the Road
11. One For My Baby (And One More For The Road) (reprise)
12. Mam'selle
13.  From This Moment On
14. Interlude
15. I'm Way Ahead of the Game
16. Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars (Corcovado)
17. Firefly
18. Once Upon a Time
19. Lullaby of Broadway
20. Chicago (That Toddlin' Town)
21. I Left My Heart In San Francisco
22. I Wanna Be Around
23. I Left My Heart In San Francisco (reprise)
24. Finale: The Moment Of Truth (reprise)

About Tony Bennett

Tony Bennett grew up in Astoria, Queens during the Great Depression as the child of Italian immigrants. After serving as an infantryman in World War II, he studied singing and then signed with Columbia Records, who released his first hits in 1951. Over the course of a 60+ year career he has sold millions of albums, is a 17-time Grammy winner and multiple Emmy award winner.

One of the only artists to have new albums chart in the '50s, '60s, '70s, '80s and '90s—and, now, in the first two decades of the 21st century—Tony Bennett has introduced a vast array of songs into the great American songbook which have since become standards of pop music. Tony Bennett's catalog of work exemplifies the truth and beauty to be found in the classic art of intimate singing.

On the release of the Tony Bennett: The Complete Collection boxed set, the New York Times wrote, "we aren't likely to see a recording career like this again." Tony Bennett is a Kennedy Center Honoree and an NEA Jazz Master.

Tony has authored four books, his official biography, two books devoted to his artwork, and the New York Times Bestseller, Life Is A Gift.

Tony is a dedicated painter whose interest in art began as a child. He continues to paint daily, even while touring. He has exhibited work around the world,  and three of his original paintings are part of the permanent collection of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC.

Throughout his career, Tony Bennett has always put his heart and time into humanitarian concerns. He's raised millions for the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. His original paintings each year grace the cover of the American Cancer Society's holiday greeting card. He received Martin Luther King Center's "Salute to Greatness Award" for his efforts to fight discrimination. The United Nations presented him with their 2007 Humanitarian Award.

In honor of his great friend and staunchest supporter, Tony established the Frank Sinatra School for the Arts, which opened as a New York City public high school, offering an extensive arts curriculum, in September of 2001.  In 2009, a permanent site for the school opened in Bennett's hometown of Astoria, Queens. With his wife Susan, they founded Exploring the Arts, which supports the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts as well as thirteen public high schools in New York City and three public high schools in East Los Angeles.

TonyBennett.com
LegacyRecordings.com
ColumbiaRecords.com

SOURCE RPM/Columbia Records/Legacy Recordings