Tony Bennett—”When Joanna Loved Me” (1991)

In the Summer of 1991, Tony Bennett, the American vocalist who was once described by Frank Sinatra as “the best in the business,” celebrated his 40th year in the music industry with a concert in England at London’s Prince Edward Theatre on Old Compton Street. One of the songs he performed was “When Joanna Loved Me,” written in 1964 by two American songwriters, composer Robert Wells and lyricist Jack Segal.

Tony Bennett was accompanied by the United Kingdom Symphony Orchestra and the Ralph Sharon Trio.

A highly regarded jazz pianist in his own right, Ralph Simon Sharon (1923-2015) was born in the East End of London. His interest for his instrument was nourished by his musical mother, who was a pianist for silent movies. By the time Ralph was a teenager, he was already playing in the celebrated British big band led by Ted Heath.

In 1954, Ralph Sharon moved to New York to try to make it in American jazz. After a few years with clarinetist Tony Scott and other jazzmen, he was asked in 1958 to audition for a “Mr. Bennett,” of whom he had never heard. “I was skeptical,” Sharon told The Daily Camera of Boulder in 2009. “But I met this guy, and he sang a few things and I played a few things. I thought, ‘This guy sounds pretty good.’ ”

Ralph Sharon remained with Tony Bennett for the better part of the next 45 years, over time serving as his accompanist, arranger and musical director, and is widely credited with nudging Tony Bennett out of pop and into jazz. Their most famous recording together was a song brought to Bennett’s attention by Sharon, called “I Left My Heart in San Francisco.” It was released in 1962 on the Columbia label and won Tony two Grammy Awards -- for record of the year and best male solo vocal performance. Its title ballad remains Tony Bennett’s vocal signature to this day and, in his myriad renditions, has sold millions of copies.

“I’ve been very lucky to have worked with Ralph Sharon,” Tony Bennett told The Seattle Times in 1993. “In my life I’ve seen only two others like him, Bill Miller with Sinatra and Bobby Tucker with Billie Holiday and Billy Eckstein -- very good jazz musicians, but able to sublimate themselves to singers. It’s a real art, and it’s rarely recognized.”