Released on October 1st of 2021, ‘Love For Sale’, is a collaboration album between Lady Gaga and Tony Bennet. All songs were covers of Cole Porter songs.
This album is Tony Bennet’s 61st and last album. Sadly, the 95-year-old legend was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and has announced that this will be his last studio album.
The collection of songs in this album are fantastic, and they all highlight Bennet’s easy-to-listen-to voice. They all follow themes of love and more specifically of young love.
With songs that sound like they are straight from an Audrey Hepburn movie-musical, ‘Love For Sale’ stands out amongst Lady Gaga’s discography. She gets the chance to show off her versatility, creating something that shows off a jazzier style of vocals.
Bennet’s and Gaga’s relationship shines through their chemistry both on the songs and in the music videos. Although most of the songs follow themes of romance, they appear to have a relationship of professional admiration and genuine affection towards each other.
The album features many instrumental solos, and they all shine through, never feeling as filler. Trumpet, drums, double-bass, and saxophone are all well-balanced and when they’re in the background, they all complement the singers’ voices well.
Bennet and Gaga both have solos in the album, and as goes without saying, their individual performances are outstanding. The audience gets to hear Bennet’s voice, still as fresh and smooth as sixty years ago.
Gaga and Bennet’s voices join for a riveting sound, as they are both audibly great voices from different times, unlike some of Bennet’s other noteworthy duet partners, such as Judy Garland and Dean Martin, which were both trained and specialized in music styles more similar to Bennet. Still, his and Gaga’s voices melded together very well, especially when in comparison to their earlier collaboration in 2014, when it felt that Gaga had to strain her voice to match Bennet’s. Now, they have embraced their vocal differences and it makes for some easy-on-the-ears, while still compelling, music.
This album may sadly be Tony Bennet’s last, but his legacy will carry on through the music he has made and through the many contemporary artists who he has collaborated with. This album is a fantastic way to bid his adoring fans farewell and pass on the torch to Gaga.
‘Love For Sale’ is a must-listen to for any Tony Bennet fan, and Lady Gaga fans who aren’t sure about their feelings concerning jazz music should at the very least give the genre a chance, starting with this album. Overall, this album gets an 8/10.
Laura Pinto-Alton // Staff Writer
