The song of the day for Tuesday, November 13, 2013 is “Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea.”
About This Song
“Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea” was written by Harold Arlen (music) and Ted Koehler (lyrics) in 1931 for The Cotton Club. Early on, it was recorded by Louis Armstrong and Cab Calloway. Other noted recordings include this one by Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald. George Harrison recorded it for his last album, Brainwashed.
About This Version
My readers know about my love of Harold Arlen and it’s been a while since I’ve featured a Harold Arlen song. Today’s song is from Tony Bennett’s 1964 album Who Can I Turn To, produced by Ernie Altschuler. The album was arranged and conducted by George Siravo and features the Ralph Sharon Trio, with Hal Gaylord on bass and Billy Exiner on drums.
http://open.spotify.com/track/0w2zSgxWS1fwSkA4dNwWnq
“Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea,” as well as the album Who Can I Turn To, is available from iTunes.
I love Harold Arlen’s compositions and his singing. He and Johnny Mercer are only a few songwriters or lyricists who can really perform their creations.
My blog haroldarlentheamericannatural.blogspot.com traces the life and career of Arlen with each post highlighting a song as well as a YouTube performance of the song being described.
Max Weissengruber Toronto Canada