As the veteran singer took a break from rehearsing for his Grammy appearance, he spoke with the Los Angeles Times about his love of the classic songs, "I'm a big believer in the Great American Songbook. A lot of record companies call it 'old music' and I think that's absolutely ignorant. It's really the greatest music that ever came out of America."

Bennett also offered his praise of Lady Gaga, "She's a very good singer. She's not a flash in the pan. That's why I had to do these great standards. And it's really paying off because the album's so big."