I Left My Heart In San Francisco

Home Is Where The Heart Is, By Jeremy Fish

I saw Mayer Hawthorne on Thursday night at the Warfield. He sounded really good but he did a pretty short set since he was slotted as the opener for Passion Pit.  He busted out the ELO cover of "Mr. Blue Sky" that Jeffro covered in this post though and ripped it.  What surprised me was the fact that he didn't do his cover of, "I Left My Heart in San Francisco."  You know the one that was discussed here.  The one that he was releasing on heart shaped USBs because it was his last tour stop.  Figured he would have worked that shit in somehow but maybe he let it out at the after party that I did not attend.

Either way the set was solid and I got the shirt/usb package dealy, which I will now share with you, you can wear the shirt on alternate Tuesdays.

"I Left My Heart in San Francisco" Audience Participation/song battle and downloads after the jump.


Here is a video they made for Mayer's cover.  It is just some legit skaters getting down on the Embarcadero, near the Ferry building.  Does anyone know who the skaters are?  Whenever I watch people skate on the Embarcadero, they never land tricks, these dudes are crazy good, that huge gap clearing jump into the manual?  GANGSTA!!


Mayer's cover is pretty much a copy of Tony's, there isn't much that he altered and I wasn't blown away by it. It's nice, but it isn't some in YO FACE TONY!! kinda shit. More of a tip of the cap, not even trying to snatch the crown type of thing going down. It gets a passing grade but no extra credit for originality. Download it here.

Here is a version by Dean Martin. It is sort of weird putting this one in the running because it is a live version from the infamous Rat Pack shows at the Sands. Otherwise known as The Summit. Dean is doing his drunk act, fucking up lines, talking back to the crowd, ratcheting up the comedy as opposed to doing a straight rendition.  When he does focus purely on the song I think he does a great job.  I wish there was a studio version of him covering it but in my minimal amount of effort searching for just such a thing I came up empty handed.  

Dean Martin- I Left My Heart In San Francisco


Brenda Lee took a crack at this song as well. I think her's is actually close to being better than Tony's. It's a very competent cover. It's good to hear a female take on the song and I have always been a fan of Brenda's voice. Sometimes she gets too chipmunky but on this track she keeps that in check and delivers a solid rendition.



Another female contender is Julie London. Ehhh as far as I am concerned this isn't up to snuff with the others. I think her voice sounds too old, like a late era Rosemary Clooney, when you could hear the effect of the cigs on her voice. It isn't a stunner, I would rather her Tony's over this any day.


Tony kinda rips it in his version. There is a reason people think of him when they think of this song. He makes it soar, really putting the pipes to work. I think he still holds the crown despite the many contenders. Who gets Your vote?

Tony Bennett- I Left My Heart In San Francisco