"april in paris" gets points for monk's brilliant 1947 version and bud powell's equally brilliant 1950 version, just really incredible and beautiful:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CO5GkdvuNFQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWUSk4nmDbo
"autumn in new york" is interesting in that vernon duke penned the words himself and still managaed to pull off something worthy of his frequent lyricist collaborators (yip harburg, ira gershwin, johnny mercer), with lines like:
Jaded rouésAnd gay divorcéesWho lunch at the RitzWill tell you that it'sDivine
and
Autumn in New YorkWhy does it seem so inviting?Autumn in New YorkIt spells the thrill of first-nightingGlittering crowdsAnd shimmering cloudsIn canyons of steel;They're making me feel:I'm home
it also notable for the rendition by billie holiday, linked in OP, which i find to be exceptionally beautiful.
― budo jeru, Saturday, 1 August 2020 17:38 (three years ago) link
of course, "april in paris" has this going for it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzKUVsHL7acscene from Blazing Saddles, featuring Count Basie and his Orchestra
on the other hand, ted gioia has this to say about the beguiling harmonic structure of "autumn in new york"
... this piece, more than any of [Duke's] other popular efforts, seems to straddle the divide between conservatory ambitions and commercial considerations, especially in its unusual harmonic movement. When the song eventually resolves into F minor, you can look back and contemplate the intricacy and misdirection of a structure that never states that chord at any point in its first 24 bars. The melody, with its alternation of downward-stepping and upward-sweeping phrases, perfectly matches the emotional arc of the words.
TG recommends a bud powell performance with charlie mingus and art taylor, live at birdland '53, which i'm having trouble tracking down.
― budo jeru, Tuesday, 11 August 2020 17:35 (three years ago) link
he definitely recorded it that same year with art taylor and george duvivier on bass. that was released as part of "the amazing bud powell, vol. 2" on blue note. his "april in paris" features max roach and curly russell on bass, and was recorded for norman granz on mercury a few years earlier, either 1950 or 1951
― budo jeru, Tuesday, 11 August 2020 17:44 (three years ago) link
Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.
― System, Thursday, 13 August 2020 00:01 (three years ago) link
Don’t get meI can’t get started.
― Time Will Show Leo Weiser (James Redd and the Blecchs), Thursday, 13 August 2020 03:45 (three years ago) link
i have a feeling this is going to be very close
― budo jeru, Thursday, 13 August 2020 23:50 (three years ago) link
Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.
― System, Friday, 14 August 2020 00:01 (three years ago) link