Stranger In Paradise
| PROFILE | |
| Songwriters | Robert Wright, George Forrest |
| Composition based on | Alexander Borodin: Gilding Dance of the Maidens |
| Year Written | 1953 |
| About Stranger In Paradise | |
| “Stranger in Paradise” was the hugely popular song from the 1953 musical Kismet. The popularity of Kismet is due in large part to Tony Bennett. At the time Kismet was preparing to open, New York City was having a massive newspaper strike and publicizing the opening of the musical was nearly impossible. The producers asked Tony Bennett to record “Stranger in Paradise” to help promote the production. His version was a hit and so was Kismet. | |
Lyrics
Take my hand,
I’m a stranger in Paradise
All lost in a wonderland
A stranger in paradise
If I stand starry eyed,
That’s a danger in Paradise
Mortals who stand beside
An angels like us
I saw her face
And I ascended
Out of the common place
Into the rarest
Somewhere in space
I hang suspended
Until I know
There’s a chance that she cares
Won’t you answer this fervent prayer?
Of a stranger in paradise
Don’t send me in dark despair
From all that I hunger for
But open your angel’s arms
To this strangers in paradise
And tell us that we need be
Strangers no more
I saw her face
And I ascended
Out of the common place
Into the rarest
Somewhere in space
I hang suspended
Until I know
There’s a chance that she cares
Won’t you answer this fervent prayer?
Of a stranger in paradise
Don’t send me in dark despair
From all that I hunger for
But open your angel’s arms
To this strangers in paradise
And tell us that we need be
Strangers no more
Session / Album Information
1953
“Stranger In Paradise” was recorded on October 13, 1953 and released that same year as a single; the same recording was used on the 1962 album Mr. Broadway: Tony’s Greatest Broadway Hits. “Stranger In Paradise” was arranged by Percy Faith.
This recording released on:
- 1954: Columbia 78: 40121
- 1954: Columbia 45: 4-40121
- 1955: Philips 78: PB 420
- 1955: Columbia EP: B-1800 — Hits From Kismet
- 1955: Columbia LP 10″: CL 2507 — Alone At Last
- 1958: Columbia LP 12″: CS 8652 — Tony’s Greatest Hits
- 1958: Columbia LP 12″ (Mono): CL 1229 — Greatest Hits
- 1962: Columbia LP 12″: CS 8563 — Mr. Broadway: Tony’s Greatest Broadway Hits
- 1962: Columbia LP 12″ (Mono): CL 1763 — Mr. Broadway: Tony’s Greatest Broadway Hits
- 1966: CBS LP 12″: DP 66010 — A String Of Tony’s Hits (UK)
- 1967: Hallmark LP 12″: SHM 769 — The Very Thought Of You
- 1971: Harmony LP 12″: KH 30758 — The Very Thought Of You
- 1972: CBS LP 12″: CBS 68200 — All-Time Greatest Hits [UK]
- 1972: Columbia LP 12″: KG 31494 — All-Time Greatest Hits
- 1976: Warwick LP 12″: PR 5021 — The Very Best Of Tony Bennett: 20 Greatest Hits [UK]
- 1976: Warwick/CBS LP 12″: CBS 5021 — The Very Best Of Tony Bennett: 20 Greatest Hits [UK]
- 1989: CBS Special Products CD: A 20982 — Your Hit Parade – 1954
- 1991: Columbia CD: C4K 46843 — Forty Years – The Artistry Of Tony Bennett
- 1993: CBS/Sony CD: SRCS-6641 — Forty Years: The Artistry Of Tony Bennett
- 1997: Columbia CD: CK 65316 — All-Time Greatest Hits
- 1999: Sony International CD: 91207 — The Essential Tony Bennett: A Retrospective
- 2000: Columbia/Legacy CD: CK 63570 — The Ultimate Tony Bennett
- 2000: Blue Jackel CD: 8427328030137 — Blue Velvet and Other Early Hits
- 2000: Sony Music CD: 63570 — The Ultimate Tony Bennett (
- 2001: Blue Moon CD: BMCD 8001 — Blue Velvet and Other Early Hits [Spain]
- 2002: Columbia/Legacy CD: 86634 — The Essential Tony Bennett
- 2004: Solo CD: 1214 — Blue Velvet And Other Early Hits
- 2004: Columbia/Legacy CD: C5K 92784 — Fifty Years: The Artistry of Tony Bennett
- 2004: Blue Moon CD: BMCD 3013 — Blue Velvet And Other Early Hits [Spain]
- 2004: Sepia Records CD: SEPIA 1028 — The Young Tony Bennett
- 2005: ASV/Living Era CD: 5512 — Take My Hand…
- 2006: RPM/Columbia/Legacy CD: 84786 — Tony Bennett’s Greatest Hits Of The ’50s
- 2006: Naxos Nostalgia CD: 8120803 — While We’re Young: Original Recordings 1950-1955
- 2007: Proper CD: PROPERBOX 121 — Young Tony
- 2008: Columbia/RPM/Legacy CD: 731397 — The Essential Tony Bennett [Limited Edition 3.0]
- 2011: Disc #21 in The Tony Bennett Complete Collection (88697874602-JK21) Mr. Broadway: Tony’s Greatest Broadway Hits
1962
“Stranger in Paradise” was recorded live at Tony Bennett’s concert at Carnegie Hall on June 9, 1962 and was initially released in 1962 on the album Tony Bennett at Carnegie Hall. Ralph Sharon arranged the song.
This recording released on:
- 1962: CBS LP 12″: BPG62116 — At Carnegie Hall – Part 1 (UK)
- 1962: Columbia LP 12″: CS 8705 — At Carnegie Hall – vol.1
- 1962: Columbia LP 12″: C2L 23 — Tony Bennett At Carnegie Hall
- 1962: Columbia LP 12″: C2S 823 — Tony Bennett At Carnegie Hall
- 1986: CBS/Sony CD: 32DP-558 — 16 Most Requested Songs [Japan
- 1990: Columbia/Legacy CD: CK-40215 — 16 Most Requested Songs
- 1990: Columbia CD: 40215 — 16 Most Requested Songs
- 1992: Sony Mid-Price CD: 4724182 — 16 Most Requested Songs
- 1993: Sony Music Special Products CD: 15056 — Tony Bennett Sings for You
- 1995: Sony Music CD: WK 75012 — Tony Bennett At Carnegie Hall
- 1997: Columbia CD: C2K 64609 — At Carnegie Hall June 9, 1962: Complete Concert
- 2001: Sony Music CD: SRCS-9093 — 16 Most Requested Songs
- 2005: Sony Music CD: 4721952 — 16 Most Requested Songs
- 2011: Disc #24 in The Tony Bennett Complete Collection (88697874602-JK23) Tony Bennett at Carnegie Hall
2011
“Stranger Is Paradise” with Andrea Bocelli was recorded in 2011 and was released that year on Duets II. It was arranged by Jorge Calandrelli.
This recording released on:
- 2011: RPM Sony 88697662532: Duets II
- 2011: RPM Sony 88697961501: Duets II (LP)
- 2011: Disc #71 in The Tony Bennett Complete Collection (88697874602-JK69) Duets II