Song of the Day: I Won’t Dance

The song of the day for Saturday, August 22, 2015 is “I Won’t Dance.”

About This Song

“I Won’t Dance” was composed by Jerome Kern, with lyrics by Jimmy McHugh and Dorothy Fields. This song was originally written in 1934 for a London musical called Three Sisters with lyrics from Oscar Hammerstein and Otto Harbach, though the show was flop and was quickly forgotten. The following year, a film of Roberta was made, and the song was re-purposed, this time with the new Jimmy McHugh and Dorothy Fields lyrics.

About This Version

Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga recorded this song for their album Cheek To Cheek. They seem to be having a lot of fun singing this song, artfully arranged by Marion Evans.

About Today

The Year of Tony Bennett was so excited to hear that Tony Bennett and Bill Charlap are releasing the Jerome Kern album next month. I’ve been humming Jerome Kern songs all day, so it’s only fitting to include one his songs. Today’s song is on the album. I’m also looking forward to hearing the recording of “All The Things You Are,” which Bennett sang at his 1962 Carnegie Hall concert, but has not recorded since. Well, actually, I’m looking forward to the entire album.

And because it’s Saturday, our video today is Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett singing today’s song from their Emmy-nominated special for PBS. And it has showgirls!

“I Won’t Dance,” as well as , is available from iTunes.