Tony Bennett’s death at the age of 96 follows a career that first brought him to prominence in the 1950s.

Anthony Benedetto was born in New York City in 1926 and died there but not before a career that took him around the world and won him legions of new admirers even in his swansong years.

Collaborations with the likes of Lady Gaga and Amy Winehouse showed his constant ability to reinvent himself for new generations.

The then Queen talking with Americans Jack Benny and Tony Bennett and Britain’s Shirley Bassey (PA)
The then Queen talking with Americans Jack Benny and Tony Bennett and Britain’s Shirley Bassey in 1965 (PA)
Music – Tony Bennett – London
Singer Tony Bennett is fitted by a tailor in Mount Street, London (Archive/PA)
Music – Tony Bennett – London
American singer Tony Bennett joins locals on a park bench in London (Archive/PA)

A regular visitor to Europe, the singer’s Italian roots in the southern province of Calabria helped him cross boundaries, although after diagnosis with Alzheimer’s disease in 2016 he took a well-earned rest from touring.

He also dabbled in art but will chiefly be remembered for his singing voice.

Rod Steiger and Tony Bennett
Actor Rod Steiger and singer Tony Bennett at St Paul’s Cathedral, London (Archive/PA)
Tony Bennett death
Tony Bennett and his second wife Sandra Grant, with their daughter Joanna (PA)
Tony Bennett art exhibition
Veteran singer Tony Bennett shows off some of his work during the opening of his art exhibition What My Heart Sees (Matthew Fearn/PA)
2021 Jazz FM Awards
Singer Tony Bennett hailed jazz as a ‘treasured art form’ as he accepted the lifetime achievement award at the 2021 Jazz FM Awards (Mark Seliger/Jazz FM/PA)
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Tony Bennett in the Royal Box on Centre Court during the 2010 Championships at Wimbledon (Rebecca Nolan/PA)

Bennett had served in the Second World War and still performed until 2021, years after his diagnosis, before finally calling time.

iTunes Festival 2014 – London
Tony Bennett performs at the Roundhouse in 2014 (Anthony Devlin/PA)
Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett turns on the Christmas tree lights at the Rockefeller building in New York (Andrew Parsons/PA)
Singer Tony Bennett (right) receives a hug from former US president Bill Clinton during A Night At The Apollo (Stan Honda/PA)
Singer Tony Bennett receives a hug from former US president Bill Clinton during A Night At The Apollo (Stan Honda/PA)
Music – Melody Maker Awards – London
Tony Bennett at the Melody Maker Awards in the Savoy Hotel, London (Archive/PA)
Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett performing on stage in London (Michael Walter/PA)