Music

The Best Moments From One Last Time: An Evening With Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga

The concert served as Tony Bennett’s last live performance due to his Alzheimer's diagnosis.

by Samantha Leach
Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett on the Cheek to Cheek tour.
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Gaga and Bennett first met at a charity event in 2011, where she wowed him with her rendition of Nat King Cole's "Orange Colored Sky." The two have been collaborating ever since, so it was only fitting that Gaga would join Bennett for his final live performance.

I was able to attend the concert courtesy of Confirmed360, a company that provides people the ultimate VIP experiences in entertainment, music, sports, and more. Here are the highlights from One Last Time.

Before Gaga sang George Gershwin’s “Someone to Watch Over Me,” she admitted that she didn’t always emotionally connect to the song. But when she realized that it was written in 1926, the year Bennett was born, she knew just how to sing it. She’d sing it for Bennett. And boy did she ever sing it for Bennett.

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On August 3, Bennett turned 95 years old. When Bennett took the stage for his last performance, Gaga made sure to serenade him with a highly original take on “Happy Birthday.” By the end, Gaga had all of Radio City Music Hall singing along with her.

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Though Gaga opened the show, Bennett brought down the house. He closed his performance with his signature hit “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” which he first recorded in 1962.

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For the A Star Is Born fans, Gaga paid homage to the film that earned her an Oscar. Towards the end of her set she sang “La Vie en Rose.” She also revealed that she “never would have sang this song if Tony didn’t tell me to.”

Naturally, the best moments of the night came when Bennett and Gaga dazzled us with their duets. The standout was when they sang "The Lady is a Tramp," the first song they ever recorded together on Bennett’s album Duets II.

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Given that Bennett is a New York native, there couldn’t have been a more fitting venue for his final performance than Radio City — or a more fitting person to share the stage with than his dear friend and collaborator Lady Gaga.