Tony Bennett, Legendary Pop Vocalist, Dead at 96

Legendary musician Tony Bennett has died. Bennett passed away in his hometown of New York City Friday morning at the age of 96, his publicist Sylvia Weiner confirmed to the Associated Press. He was two weeks shy of his 97th birthday. A cause of death was not disclosed, but Bennett had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2016.

Born Anthony Dominick Benedetto in Astoria, Queens, New York on Aug. 3, 1926, Bennett’s love of music began when he was a child. He studied music and painting at New York’s High School of Industrial Art, with his vocal influences including Al Jolson, Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday, and Judy Garland. At the age of 18 in 1944, Bennett was drafted and served in World War II’s European theater, doing combat infantry duty and liberating a German concentration camp. He later sang as a member of an Armed Forces band, and upon his return from service, he studied voice with Miriam Spier in the American Theatre Wing.

Bennett soon became one of the most notable singers of the mid-20th century, releasing more than 70 albums throughout his decades-long career, most of which were released through Columbia Records, which signed him in 1950. He earned his first big hit with “Because of You” in 1951. That song was followed by several other No. 1 pop singles in the years that followed, including a recasting of Hank Williams’ country hit “Cold, Cold Heart” (1951)and  “Rags to Riches” (1953). However, he may best be known for his signature 1962 hit “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” which he debuted during a December 1961 date at the Venetian Room of San Francisco’s Fairmont Hotel.

Although Bennett’s style of music, which cemented him as one of the top pop performers in the ’50s and early ’60s, eventually fell out of fashion, he re-emerged in the ’90s under the management of his son Danny. It was during this time that Bennett began recording duets with younger pop stars, including Amy Winehouse and Lady Gaga. His 1994 album MTV Unplugged won a Grammy as Album of the Year.

Ultimately, throughout his career, Bennett released more than 70 albums and took home 18 Grammy Awards, with a total of 36 nominations. He was also a Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award recipient in 2001, a Kennedy Center Honoree in 2005 and a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master in 2006, and won two Emmy Awards. He announced his retirement from music in August 2021, just months after revealing his Alzheimer’s diagnosis, with his final public appearance being with Gaga at Radio City Music Hall in August 2021. Bennett is survived by his wife Susan Benedetto, his two sons, Danny and Dae Bennett, his daughters Johanna Bennett and Antonia Bennett, and nine grandchildren.