At first it might seem surprising that Michael Feinstein would find commonality with Jimmy Webb. One is the elegant interpreter of standards from the Great American Songbook; the other is an Oklahoma born and bred songwriter, who has authored such Americana-themed songs as "Wichita Lineman" and "By The Time I Get to Phoenix." However, when you delve deeper into the artistry of these two gentlemen, their mutual love of a well-crafted song makes their similarities all the more apparent. They share a passion for a strong melody, a descriptive lyric, and a wide-eyed romantic outlook on the brightest and darkest moments that life has to offer. Ultimately, their working together is as natural a union as a soft tee shirt and a pair of worn out jeans.

Only One Life (CCD-2203), the first album-length collaboration from Michael Feinstein and Jimmy Webb, has been over a decade in the making. The duo first met in 1990. A seed was planted, and soon, Feinstein was recording Webb’s composition "Time Enough for Love" for his Forever album, with the composer providing the arrangement. While Michael has since recorded a number of Jimmy’s songs, Only One Life stands as his first project to consist solely of Webb compositions. It is also history-in-the-making, introducing the world to six never-before-recorded Webb songs—"Is There Love After You," "Louisa Blu," "These Are All Mine," "Belmont Avenue," "She Moves, Eyes Follow," and the title track, "Only One Life."

As Michael Feinstein has recorded many classics throughout his career, including songs by George and Ira Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Johnny Mercer, and Duke Ellington, he is an excellent judge of composition, and he feels the works of Jimmy Webb are on par with those of any in the Great American Songbook. "Jimmy has the perfect combination of music and lyrics, intelligence and wit, and everything else that goes into the craft of songwriting," says Feinstein. "Like all great songs, you are not necessarily aware of the craft that goes into them when you listen to the song being performed, but there is a precision and beauty in the outcome."

In addition to the six new tracks on the CD, other Webb-penned classics featured on the album include "Piano," a song Webb wrote when he was just 18-years-old, "Didn’t We," one of his most recorded compositions, and "Time Flies," a song Rosemary Clooney performed during her Emmy-nominated guest appearance on the hit NBC TV show ER (both dear friends of the late singer, Feinstein and Webb dedicated this CD to her). Another familiar tune on Only One Life is "Up, Up and Away." "One night, I had a brainstorm about doing this song in a completely different way," explains the composer. "I realized that the lyrics are very sexy, so I pitched Michael on the idea to record it as a love song. I think he pulled it off perfectly. With the hot samba rhythms and Alan’s [Broadbent] arrangement, it is very romantic."

If there is a connection between Only One Life and previous Michael Feinstein recording projects, it is the romanticism inherent in the music and lyrics, and in Feinstein’s own eloquent interpretation of the material. With fourteen Jimmy Webb compositions recorded for Only One Life, most featuring the composer at the piano, Feinstein has a brand new set of standards to work with. He also has a new sound to explore, making this a looser, more contemporary Feinstein recording than anything the singer has created in the past.

"Working with Jimmy has been a unique experience for me," says the four-time GRAMMY® Award-nominated singer, "because his songs have more of a contemporary feel than the material I generally interpret. He is the link between the classics and contemporary songwriting in that he is thoroughly schooled in almost all genres of music. Jimmy has no snobbism about music, if it is good music he can appreciate and learn from it. He can write in all different styles, and his influences extend to everything from country music to the Beach Boys, anything that is well constructed and has a good melody. Anything he hears, he synthesizes into his own voice. He’s a brilliant lyricist, a true poet, and a heck of a nice guy."

Michael Feinstein first learned to play the piano by ear at the age of five, and began performing at local piano bars in his hometown of Columbus, Ohio, after graduating high school. At the age of twenty, he moved to Los Angeles, where he worked for Ira Gershwin, cataloging the legendary songwriter’s vast collection of phonograph records. It was during this time that he first met Rosemary Clooney, who would quickly become one of his closest and dearest friends. By 1986, he had met another legend, Liza Minnelli, who was so impressed by his talent that she sponsored Feinstein’s New York debut. Two years later, his Broadway show, Isn’t It Romantic, established him as a dynamic force that would find a home in the worlds of cabaret, recording, film, and television.

Since joining the Concord Records family of artists in 1998, Michael Feinstein has recorded several popular and GRAMMY® Award-nominated CDs, including Michael and George: Feinstein Sings Gershwin (1998), Big City Rhythms (with the Maynard Ferguson Big Band, 1999), Romance On Film, Romance on Broadway (2000), and Michael Feinstein With the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (2002), which paired the singer with a symphony orchestra for the first time.

More than a mere performer, Feinstein is nationally recognized for his commitment to the American popular song, both celebrating its art and preserving its legacy. To that end, the singer is a member of the Library of Congress National Recording Preservation Board. He is also the curator of Concord’s subsidiary label Feinery, which was created in 2002 to record favorite current artists, as well as restore recordings and musical broadcasts from the golden age of entertainment.

Jimmy Webb is the only artist to ever receive GRAMMY® Awards for music, lyrics, and orchestration. He is a member of the National Academy of Popular Music Songwriter’s hall of Fame and the Nashville Songwriter’s Hall of Fame. According to BMI, "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" is the third most performed song of the past fifty years. In 1999, he was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of fame as one of the State’s most celebrated sons.

With so many songs in Webb’s repertoire, Feinstein describes the task of selecting tracks for Only One Life as "very exciting and very challenging." "Every time we would meet and talk," he continues, "Jimmy would play me a different song or say ‘did you hear this one?’ He was constantly introducing me to new songs, songs that I had never heard or that he hadn’t thought about in many years." Both Feinstein and Webb agree that the wellspring of Webb-penned compositions leaves the door wide open for another CD in the future. In the meantime, music lovers will find Only One Life to be the perfect showcase of Webb’s wonderfully evocative lyrics and Feinstein’s incomparable vocal talents. "I truly believe that the songs on this CD have the potential to become new standards," he says. "All of Jimmy’s songs have been incredibly influential to this generation, and they will be standards for the next generation."