I was 14 years old when I saw Titanic in the theater, and instead of sighing at how romantic it was, I instead tee-hee-heed all movie long.

There is only one scene in Titanic that I remember with any clarity whatsoever. And that is the part where Rose says to Jack, “I want you to draw me wearing this”—where “this” is a necklace—and then Rose’s voice drops to a sultry new register, and she intonates, “ONLY THIS.” And then Jack sketches Rose with a wildly professional ferocity, and then they do it in somebody’s car, and then Billy Zane shows up and he’s like, “Ooooh, I’m so mad!”

Every time I look at this nudie sketch of Lady Gaga—which was drawn by Tony Bennett—all I can picture is that one scene in Titanic. Evidently, Annie Leibovitz arranged their little fine art session; Bennett’s drawing will appear in an upcoming issue of Vanity Fair.

Bennett duetted with Lady Gaga on Duets II‘s “The Lady is a Tramp” (it’s good!), and he’s basically been gushing about Gaga ever since.

“She is the most beautiful person I ever met,” Bennett said of Gaga during her Thanksgiving TV special, adding that she is “America’s answer to Picasso.”

(Image via the Daily Mail.)

I just love Tony Bennett. I really do. When he finally dies, I’m going to be seriously sad – it’ll be an epic loss. Same with Rod Stewart. I cannot convey to you how much I love that man, and the fact that the two of them have done jazz standard albums is even further awesome to me, because I think the only songs worth listening to are of the jazz and blues genre (give me Robert Johnson or Billie Holiday any old day), or those with jazz and blues influences. But hey, that’s just me. I’m not saying there’s anything particularly wrong with death metal or Britney Spears, but I don’t think Mr. Bennett here has either of those on shuffle in his iPod.

Oh, and Gaga sounds pretty good, too, I suppose.

We have Duets II fever! The album’s September 20 release date can’t get here soon enough!

The music video for “Body and Soul”—Amy Winehouse‘s duet with legendary Tony Bennett—premiered on MTV yesterday, on what would have been Winehouse’s 28th birthday:

On Sunday, Tony Bennett will perform at the Metropolitan Opera, marking the beginning of the official celebration of Mr. Bennett’s 85th birthday. (No, I know, his birthday was in August. Whatever! Tony Bennett celebrates his birthday whenever he wants! He’s 85!)

The upcoming performance also marks Mr. Bennett’s Metropolitan debut. There, Bennett will sing duets with Aretha, Elton, and Alejandro Sanz. But don’t expect Mr. Bennett to sing “Body and Soul” onstage—that’s Amy’s song.

“It wouldn’t seem right without Amy,” Bennett says. “She did such a great job on it.”

Image via the NY Daily News

The beginning of this video—ugh, I dunno, man. Amy Winehouse is so sardonic, so full of life. And by the end, she’s sincerely giddy about having just sung with Tony Bennett. Both times, bam! I was wrecked.

In the Studio with Tony Bennett & Amy Winehouse:

The first time I met ‘Tone’ was—can I call him ‘Tone’? Thanks. First time I met ‘Tone’—should you ask him first? Really. Before, ah, you start…? …Okay. The first time I met Tone I would say was, I took my dad and my stepmother and, uh, my boyfriend to see him at Royal Albert Hall. And we went both times.

When my dad saw that me and Tone would be singing “Body and Soul,” my dad, personally, himself, he was like, “Oh! It’s only my favorite song in the world you’re gonna sing; oh my God!” An’ he goes, “Do you even know it!” And I was like, “Of course I know it… Mitchell. I’m your daughter. Of course I know it.”

And it was really exciting that he chose that song, ’cause I do love it. It’s such a beautifully written song. And it’s a song that you can do a lot with. So I was really excited to sing that. And, um—and the ending just worked out, like, perfect. And our singing together, like, just blended, perfectly, and it just was, like, it couldn’t have been better.

Tony Bennett’s album, Duets II, is the sequel to his 2006 effort, Duets. The album, all jazz standards, pairs Bennett with younger talents like Mariah Carey, Josh Groban, Norah Jones, Willie Nelson (!), Aretha (!!), Lady Gaga, and my secret favorite, Sheryl Crow, who—I’ve always thought, anyway—really missed the boat on a woulda-shoulda-coulda jazz career. (See also: Carrie Underwood.)

Tony Bennett famously enjoyed a career resurgence in the mid-90s, having successfully connected with a much younger audience.

Duets II drops September 20, timed to coincide with Bennett’s 85th birthday.

Screencap via Idolator.

“It was a thrill to record with Amy Winehouse, and when you listen to the recording of ‘Body and Soul,’ it is a testament to her artistic genius and her brilliance as one of the most honest musicians I have ever known.

Tony Bennett, on working with Amy Winehouse in the years before she died. Tony, incidentally, is set to do a ‘Rehab’ tribute to Amy at this year’s 2011 MTV VMAs. I have no doubt that the act will render my eyeballs tearless, and I have a feeling that those bitches will not be drying on their own.

This is just beautiful.