Playground

Tony Bennett | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 29, 1998)
• Original Release Date: September 29, 1998
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B00000C285
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #196,941 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Tony Bennett's career was revitalized in the 1990s when a whole new generation was exposed to him via his turn on MTV Unplugged. But he spent most of the decade recording albums on which he demonstrated his love for Frank Sinatra (Perfectly Frank), Billie Holiday (Here's to the Ladies), Count Basie (Basie Swings, Bennett Sings), and, on The Playground, children. That he succeeds here--elegantly, as always--is due as much to his classic style as to the way he refuses to sing down to the intended audience. Even his kid-friendly duets with Kermit the Frog, Elmo, and Rosie O'Donnell are handled with dignity, though a few songs--including "My Mom" and "Being Green," with Kermit--are paced so leisurely that some children's attention may wander. They're well made up for with the bouncy, invigorating "Firefly" (also with Kermit), "The Bare Necessities," and the rest of the sing-along encouraging songs. --Randy Silver

From Parents' Choice®

Jazz great Tony Bennett, already a hit with the MTV generation, proves there is no age limit to his appeal with this delicious collection of vocal stylings for the very young and their favorite adults. It's no celebrity phone-in, either. Bennett is in top form, along with superb musicians - Ralph Sharon on piano, Clayton Cameron on drums, Paul Langosch on bass and Gray Sargent on guitar. The standout title cut sets the tone: jazz pianist Bill Evans' tender composition with evocative lyrics written especially for Bennett by songwriters Alan and Marilyn Bergman ("When I hear children at play, memories come from far away...See-saw, lifting you high, swings that let you touch the sky..."). Old Classics like "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive" and "Swinging on a Star," are sparkling fresh and Bennett interacts with effortless charm with likeable guest stars Rosie O'Donnell ("Put On a Happy Face"), Kermit the Frog ("Bein' Green" and "Firefly") and Elmo ("Little Things"). Upbeat , he's dynamite; slow and soulful (especially in the evocative title song and the poignant "Make the World Your Own"), he's sublime.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Bennett" Fits Fine 'tween "Backstreet" and "Brittney," Kids, December 27, 1999

By 

Anthony G Pizza "trivialtony" (FL) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Playground (Audio CD)

Tony Bennett, at this point in his legendary career, is nearly incapable of making a poor album. Here, singing about, to, and for children, his work is especially elegant and empathetic. The title song, written by the Bergmans, is a jazzy piece of childhood nostalgia. His versions of "All God's Chillen' Got Rhythm," (featuring a killer brush drum solo!) "Paper Moon," and his versions of the Disney songs swing sweetly with help from the Ralph Sharon Trio. The final, unlisted track on my copy of the CD is "Christmas in Herald Square," a New York sequel of sorts to "The Christmas Song." Bennett sings it beautifully. "The Playground" is a wonderful place for children and adults to spend time. It's an album Frank Sinatra never got the chance to do and Dean Martin, well....

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous, August 2, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Olrando, FLorida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Playground (Audio CD)

Tony Bennett, the Muppets, the children and Rosie make a wonderful combination for this cd. My 18 month old daughter loves to listen to this cd in the car or just when we are at home. She is learning some great oldies but goodies.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mom and music lover, November 27, 2001

By 

M. Church "Runnin Mama" (Charlestown, IN USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Playground (Audio CD)

I love this cd! It is wonderful for for infants (my 10mth old bounces along with the songs), and adults (my husband and I never tire of listening to it on our trips from GA to OH). The cd's smooth melodies keep us all entranced and I really like the guest singers (Elmo, Kermit, and Rosie).