If I were stranded on a desert island for the rest of my life and could have only 5 CDs, this would be one of them. But why? Tony Bennett has made fine music for 50 years, there are 108 Bennett albums listed (today) on Amazon, and although I consider myself a Bennett fan I know only a fraction of his music. So why THIS album? Well, quite simply, I believe it is unique - and even better than his other work.

Tony Bennett has always loved and performed jazz, but his earlier work (through the 60s) - was often more "popular" or "mainstream" than jazz - wonderful, but for a jazz fan, less nourishing. Jazz was something that he snuck into his albums because he loved it. Since the 90s, Tony has been more prolific and popular than ever, and jazz has been his primary idiom - his popularity has given him the freedom to make it so. But his voice, sadly, inevitably, is not what it was. But "Jazz", taken from recordings made from 1954 through 1967, is to my knowledge the only true jazz collection from the period when his vocal powers were at their peak. It also features some of the greatest jazz instrumental performers of that time.

There are 22 songs on the CD, and every one is strong. His moods range from playful to exuberant to gritty dignity in the face of heartbreak, connecting one song to the next with uncanny grace, as if this collection were a single concert instead of a 13-year retrospective. Most of the songs are not well known or often heard, but even those that are familiar to any jazz aficionado, come across as truly his own. For example, he takes the Cole Porter classic "Just One of Those Things" and performs it with only light, frantic drumming backing him, highlighting the casualness with which he dismisses his love affair. Another classic, "Stella By Starlight" is propelled by his soaring vocal - never has any singer sung the phrase "great symphonic themes" with more power than Tony. At the opposite extreme, "While the Music Plays On" and is a full-throated song of the emotional agony of maintaining dignity in the face of a lost lover dancing with a new partner.

I could go on and on about each song, but the plain truth is that each one is Tony Bennett at his absolute, inimitable best. This may be the most essential album for a Bennett fan to have. You will love it!

This is the best Tony Bennett collection. The large number of lesser known hits, all with a jazz edge, come together into a very consistent and listenable experience. A good overview of his career for the initiate. Very highly recommended even for the long-listener.

If you are familiar with Tony Bennett only from "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" or "MTV Unplugged," and are at all interested in him, listen to this one. This is Bennett's Best. He recorded this in the 1950's, when he was in his prime and his voice had all of the notes. The most stunning cuts from this album are the ones toward the end that he did with Stan Getz ("Out of This World", "Just Friends", "Have You Met Miss Jones" and "Danny Boy"), but the whole album is one glorious romp through the best of Tin Pan Alley. Essential for Bennett fans, and highly recommended for anyone else.

This is the finest CD collection that is available of Tony's jazz singing, and along with the two Bill Evans albums, the two Count Basie albums, Sings Rogers and Hart Songs and Bennett/Berlin one of the best jazz CDs in his catalogue. And he is truly a jazz singer at heart. Here we have the legendary Bennett/Getz sessions, plus tracks from various of his albums through the 50's up to 1967. And they are fine examples. But really if you want the whole deal you have to buy yourself a record player and collect the vinyls until Tony releases them on CD. The ones to look for are 'When Lights Are Low', 'My Heart Sings', 'Tony Sings for Two', 'Tony Makes It Happen' and 'Cloud 7'. These really are some of the greatest jazz vocal albums of the last half century.

This is a good effort. Tony Bennett sings in a swinging jazz style and does a great job of it. Some of the recordings are studio quality and others are recorded live. All are first rate. One song, though, sets this album apart. "Solitude" will grip even the most jaded heart. After hearing that one, the rest were superfluous. They were good, however.