You probably know that at the end of September 1976, Bill Evans and Tony Bennett completed recording their second duet album, Together Again, for Tony's Improv label. What you don't know is that soon after they finished, Evans and Tony were taped in a studio performing The Bad and the Beautiful (solo by Evans) Lucky to be Me, My Foolish Heart, When in Rome, Some Other Time, A Child is Born, Make Someone Happy, We'll Be Together Again and a reprise of The Bad and the Beautiful. Three of the songs were from their first album—The Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Album—recorded for Fantasy in 1975.
As best I can tell, the purpose of the half-hour video was to offer it to television for syndication in support of the new album. I'm also guessing that the cash for the expensive multi-camera taping came from Improv. Then, when there weren't any TV takers (I'm assuming this was the case since there's no listing anywhere of it being broadcast), the expense may have hastened Improv's shuttering at the end of 1977. Since the program was produced and directed by Canadian Bernard Picard, it may have been geared for the Canadian Broadcast Corp. (CBC). I have an email in to Tony for more information.
Improv has an interesting history. Tony partnered with Buffalo-based businessman Bill Hassett in 1975, and Improv released 10 albums by the end of '77. According to Tony, in his 2007 memoir The Good Life, written by Will Friedwald, “The idea began to gel around 1972 when I met Bill Hassett, a successful realtor in Buffalo who owned the Statler Hilton Hotel there. We thought that between his business acumen and my musical know-how, we ought to be able to get something going. It turned out that it took a lot more than that, but I wouldn't find that out until a couple of years and a couple of hundred thousand dollars later. We named our co,pany Tobill Enterprises and I called our label Improv."
Here's Bill Evans and Tony Bennett...
As best I can tell, the purpose of the half-hour video was to offer it to television for syndication in support of the new album. I'm also guessing that the cash for the expensive multi-camera taping came from Improv. Then, when there weren't any TV takers (I'm assuming this was the case since there's no listing anywhere of it being broadcast), the expense may have hastened Improv's shuttering at the end of 1977. Since the program was produced and directed by Canadian Bernard Picard, it may have been geared for the Canadian Broadcast Corp. (CBC). I have an email in to Tony for more information.
Improv has an interesting history. Tony partnered with Buffalo-based businessman Bill Hassett in 1975, and Improv released 10 albums by the end of '77. According to Tony, in his 2007 memoir The Good Life, written by Will Friedwald, “The idea began to gel around 1972 when I met Bill Hassett, a successful realtor in Buffalo who owned the Statler Hilton Hotel there. We thought that between his business acumen and my musical know-how, we ought to be able to get something going. It turned out that it took a lot more than that, but I wouldn't find that out until a couple of years and a couple of hundred thousand dollars later. We named our co,pany Tobill Enterprises and I called our label Improv."
Here's Bill Evans and Tony Bennett...
This story appears courtesy of JazzWax by Marc Myers.
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