Clinton Still Loves Tony Bennett, Even As Time Goes ByTony Bennett’s pop-culture relevance may have quietly passed away long ago (his tour this year is sponsored by the AARP), but to a certain subset of the population, the octogenarian’s still a heartthrob. At last night’s sold-out “The Best Is Yet to Come” concert at Radio City Music Hall, the crowd was still screaming, “I love you, Tony!” Just like the fifties! A benefit for the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts that Bennett founded, the show featured collaborators from his last year’s Duets album: a shaky James Taylor, a preternaturally dapper John Legend, and k.d. lang, who even got an (admittedly squandered) onstage kiss from the silver stud. After the concert, the crowd moved across the street to the Rockefeller Center Summer Garden. Bill Clinton arrived late because he was stopped at the Cucina & Co. market down the hall. “He’s getting food? That could take a while!” cracked Regis, stalling during introductions. Oh, Regis! When he finally arrived, the former Pres and Reeg traded tales of Bennett’s painting acumen. During one interview, the leathery Live host said Tony actually took out the brushes. “And I still have that portrait today!” Later, packages, like original Annie Leibovitz prints and private tennis lessons with Andre Agassi, were auctioned off for the charity. The night’s biggest seller? A watercolor, by Mr. Tony Bennett. —Amos Barshad
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James Taylor Crowd Knows Nothing of His WorkThere was the usual phalanx of celebs at the Ross School in East Hampton Saturday for James Taylor’s penultimate concert in the Hampton Social series — the Olsens, Richard Gere, Jimmy Buffett, Daryl Hannah, even Paul McCartney — but, as it turned out, they weren’t all necessarily there to see Sweet Baby James. “I don’t know much of his music,” James Blunt admitted to us before the show started, “but I’m looking forward to it.” So no favorite songs, then? “I’ll have to get back to you at the end of the night,” he said. Mischa Barton was equally flummoxed. “Um, I don’t know,” she admitted. “Everyone’s been asking me. I put it on my iPod before we left, but I haven’t listened.” Beth Ostrosky, there with her boyfriend, Howard Stern, was one of the few who could answer the question. “‘You’ve Got a Friend,’” she said proudly. And local gal Christie Brinkley eventually came up with an answer, too. “I sing the kids this song at night to help put them to sleep,” she said. “I don’t know what it’s called, but it goes, ‘There is a young cowboy ’ Oh, ‘Sweet Baby James,’ that’s it.” Yup. —Brett Amelkin
