That voice. You know it when you hear it. Smooth and relaxed, yet as agile and exciting as an entire jazz rhythm section. Elegant and formal, yet as earnest and intimate as a conversation with a friend. It is a voice beloved for more than five decades. A voice that Frank Sinatra himself once proclaimed to be the best in the business. It could only belong to one man and that is Tony Bennett.

Tony Bennett is a singer for whom the words truly matter, and for that he is the consummate pop singer. But what he does with those words with his gifted voice is pure magic. When he sings, he inhabits the meaning of the song, and he animates it with an innate understanding of jazz phrasing. He cozies up to the beat, coyly plays with the melody and the tempo, and knows just when to pause for dramatic effect. Bennett also knows when not to pause. At 75 years of age and as dapper and fit as ever, he continues to tour and sell out shows around the world, proving that the greatest American songs of the 20th Century are alive and well in this century.

Born Anthony Dominick Benedetto in Astoria, Queens in 1926, Tony began work on his musical craft at an early age. Inspired by his boyhood idols, Bing Crosby and Nat King Cole, the teenaged Bennett actively pursued his passion for singing while attending the High School of Industrial Arts in Manhattan. While waiting tables to earn money, he always practiced. As an enlisted man during World War II, he sang in military bands and entertained troops in Europe. Later, while taking vocal studies at the American Theatre Wing school, he began to perfect his phrasing, breathing and delivery. As a child of the big band area, Bennett drew upon jazz influences and heeded the advice of his teacher, Miriam Spier, who urged him to listen to instrumentalists instead of singers for inspiration.

The first time Bennett sang in a nightclub was in 1946 when he sat in with trombonist Tyree Glenn at the Shangri-La in Astoria, but his big break came one night in 1949. While peforming with Pearl Bailey in Greenwich Village, Bennett attracted the attention of comedian Bob Hope, who booked him into his show at the Paramount Theatre. It was Hope, in fact, who suggested that the young singer change his name to "Tony Bennett." At the Paramount, Bennett’s rendition of "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" attracted the attention of Columbia Records’ Mitch Miller, who signed him to the label.

Fame came early to Bennett in the ‘50’s when he recorded a series of hit singles for Columbia, including "Because of You," "I Won’t Cry Anymore" and a remake of the Hank Williams classic "Cold, Cold Heart." During the period from 1950 to 1964, Bennett’s career soared with 24 hits making the Top 40. Many of these recordings are songs that have become synonymous with his name, including "Stranger in Paradise," "Just in Time," "There’ll Be No Teardrops Tonight," "Rags to Riches" and "I Left My Heart in San Francisco," which earned him two of his ten Grammy Awards.

Through the ‘60s and into the ‘70s, Bennett’s renditions of songs continued to dominate the charts and to become part of the popular repertory, such as "How Do You Keep the Music Playing?," "The Best is Yet to Come," and "I Wanna Be Around." Although he took some time away from recording in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s to concentrate on performing live and his other passion – painting - he returned to form on his 1986 Columbia release, The Art of Excellence.

By 1990, Bennett was inarguably the leading interpreter of the "Great American Songbook." As a whole new generation of listeners began to appreciate the timelessness (and to them, eternal hipness) of the songs that Bennett sang, his career soared even higher. He continued to earn more Grammys, this time for concept albums such as Perfectly Frank (1992), an album of songs devoted to Frank Sinatra; Steppin’ Out (1993), a testimonial to Fred Astaire; and MTV Unplugged (1994) featuring duets with Elvis Costello, K.D. Lang and others, for which Bennett took home Grammy’s top honor, Album of the Year. This successful run made Bennett one of the very few artists to have new albums charting in the ‘50s, ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s, an achievement that helped garner Bennett a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. His recently released Playin’ With My Friends: Bennett Sings the Blues, featuring duets with special guest artists, extends this impressive feat into a sixth decade.

Bennett also received an Emmy Award and a Cable Ace Award for his groundbreaking television special, "Live By Request…Tony Bennett," which featured a unique interactive format in which the viewing audience called in song requests to Bennett live during the program. It is a concept created by Tony that has become a regular special on the A&E Network. He has also authored two books, What My Heart Has Seen, a beautifully-bound collection of his paintings published in 1996, and The Good Life, his biography published in 1998.

Today, Tony Bennett remains a major musical force, and his prodigious skill and talent as a singer is evident not only by his number of hits and awards, but by the incredible array of artists who have performed and recorded with him over the years. From jazz legends Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Bill Evans and Woody Herman to blues greats such as Ray Charles, B.B. King and Bonnie Raitt to modern pop/rock artists such as Stevie Wonder, Sheryl Crow and Billy Joel, they have all recognized the beauty and wonder of Tony Bennett…and that voice – aged to perfection.

"ASCAP is truly proud to honor Tony Bennett with the Pied Piper Award," says ASCAP President and Chairman Marilyn Bergman. "He has touched audiences for over five decades during his remarkable career. Tony is a true musical treasure and one of the best friends a song ever had."

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