The song of the day for Thursday, January 19, 2017 is “Stella By Starlight.”
About This Song
“Stella By Starlight” was composed in 1944 by Victor Young; the lyrics by Ned Washington were added in 1946. The song as an instrumental was introduced in the 1944 film The Uninvited. The first recording with vocals was made in 1947 by Harry James and Frank Sinatra; it has been frequently recorded ever since. It found its way as a jazz standard in the early 1950s, with recordings by Stan Getz, Bud Powell and Stan Kenton. It ranks as the 10th most important jazz title at jazzstandards.com.
About This Version
Tony Bennett recorded “Stella By Starlight” in 1961 for his album My Heart Sings, with a terrific arrangement by Ralph Burns.
Stella By Starlight
Stella By Starlight, a song by Tony Bennett on Spotify
“Stella By Starlight,” as well as My Heart Sings, is available from iTunes.
Thanks for posting this one. I love how the arranger had the trumpets and sax drop out, leaving just the guitarist to strum a few chords before Bennett finished it up.
Hello Bill,
I agree completely about the arrangment of this version. Ralph Burns wrote a number of arrangements for Tony and all of them are superb.
My favorite collaboration between Bennett and Burns is the 1959 album Hometown, My Town. I think it’s brilliant, though often overlooked.
Thanks for your comment. I hope you are enjoying the site.
Best regards,
Suzanne Chiles