Lets post about JAZZ STANDARDS

Almost started another thread to this effect but guess I will revive this one. Hurting and Crutis otm upthread. Think certain jazz guys have recommended instrumentalists learn the lyrics of tunes and listen to vocalists perform them-Lester Young comes to mind- but seems like this advice is often ignored. Always fun to either 1) dig into the origin of certain standards that one has been assuming "are just there" or 2) to come across an interesting tune that turns out to be a standard but is not played to death, in every fakebook, etc. Right now a tune in the latter category for me is "A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square," which I first heard sung by Mel Torme, then by Anita O'Day, some other singer or singers that I'm forgetting about. It seems to have originally been sung by Vera Lynn. Don't even know who wrote it but will get back to you.

Ah, Vera Lynn didn't do the very first recording, but hers did come out within the first calendar year it was out. The lyricist also wrote the words to "These Foolish Things (Remind Me of You)," apparently because he missed Anna May Wong when he went back to England.

Ah, first version was sung by Jane Birkin's mother!

Here is Anita O'Day version:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CMxMyCY1c4

I loved Ted Gioia's book The Jazz Standards mainly because of this archaeological aspect. In addition to examining the origin and history of some 250 standards, he writes about key recordings of each, and of course someone has made a giant Spotify playlist.

Yes, that is a good book, if one that I have yet to make my way through. Didn't not know about the gigantic playlist but of course.

Ixp)
Somehow with its romantic lunar London landscape it seems to me to be the aural equivalent of Elizabeth Bowen's “Mysterious Kôr".

I have a vague suspicion that someone in an ilxor.

Giant playlist looks to be extremely useful as you can pretty much listen one song at a time if you so choose.

After quick glance through a few of the As, would like to say Mark Murphy's recording of "Angel Eyes" should have been included.

But I see he did get in for "Cantaloupe Island."

I got kind of obsessed with Memories of You for a while in college after hearing first the Mingus and then the Louis Armstrong version. Several years later it seemed like a lot of people were playing it, probably an example of both me and all of those other people "crate digging" for less-worn standards.

Ted Gioia's Huffington Post articles about how Lady Gaga recording with Tony Bennett proves that young Americans are sick and tired of all that programmed electronic bleepity-bloop pop and are ready for real music has almost totally pushed me away from reading any of his books.

The other day I got to wondering about the origins of Autumn Leaves, for the stupid reason that it's fall right now and autumn leaves were drifting past my window.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWfsp8kwJto

There are so many versions of Love For Sale but aside from Ella Fitzgerald, the two Miles/Cannonball ones are the ones that cannot be fucked with imo.

I don't think this qualifies as a jazz standard, but I've been kind of obsessed with "The Weekend of a Private Secretary" lately, which it turns out was written by Johnny Mercer, and recorded by Mildred Bailey, Eileen Farrell, and the Glenn Miller Orchestra among others.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ey_xb8Ml-zU

that spotify list is a great treat

Even better than my Jazz Daily Mix

Giant playlist is surprisingly listenable. Or maybe not surprising.

Also, here is another relevant thread: Standards Scrutiny: A Night In Tunisia