"I Wanna Be Around" is a popular song. In the lyrics, the singer declares that he "wants to be around" when the woman who spurned him inevitably gets her heart broken. The song is credited to Sadie Vimmerstedt and Johnny Mercer.

"I Wanna Be Around"
Song
Published1962 by Commander Publications
Songwriter(s)Sadie Vimmerstedt and Johnny Mercer
"I Wanna Be Around"
Single by Tony Bennett
from the album I Wanna Be Around...[1]
B-side"I Will Live My Life for You"
ReleasedNovember 16, 1962
RecordedOctober 19, 1962
StudioColumbia 30th Street Studio, New York City
GenreJazz, traditional pop
Length2:03
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Sadie Vimmerstedt, Johnny Mercer[2]
Producer(s)Ernest Altschuler
Tony Bennett singles chronology
"Candy Kisses"
(1962)
"I Wanna Be Around"
(1962)
"The Good Life"
(1963)

Origins edit

Vimmerstedt was a 52-year-old widow [3] and a beautician[4] in Youngstown, Ohio, who sent Mercer an idea for the song in 1957, as well as giving Mercer the opening line ("I want to be around to pick up the pieces, when somebody breaks your heart"). She was inspired by Frank Sinatra divorcing his first wife in order to marry Ava Gardner, only to then see Gardner leave Sinatra. Not knowing exactly where to send her letter to, Vimmerstedt simply addressed it to 'Johnny Mercer...Songwriter...New York, NY'. The post office forwarded it to ASCAP, who in turn passed it along to Mercer, who was a member of the organization. Mercer wrote the song and agreed to share 1/3 of the royalties and credits with Vimmerstedt.[5] The song was published in 1962.

Notable cover versions edit

Many other singers have covered the song including:

References edit

  1. ^ "I Wanna Be Around". Tonybennett.com. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  2. ^ I Wanna Be Around at AllMusic
  3. ^ "I Wanna Be Around". Kokomo.ca. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  4. ^ "JohnnyMercer". Ozsons.com. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  5. ^ "Story of the song's composition". Archived from the original on 2007-09-28. Retrieved 2007-07-16.
  6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits (8th ed.). New York: Billboard Books. p. 58. ISBN 0-8230-7499-4.
  7. ^ "www.allmusic.com". allmusic.com. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
  8. ^ "allmusic.com". allmusic.com. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  9. ^ "Allmusic.com". Allmusic.com. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  10. ^ "I Wanna Be Around (song by Terri Gibbs) • Music VF, US & UK hits charts". Musicvf.com. Retrieved 26 April 2021.