The song of the day for Saturday, December 11, 2021, is “Prelude to a Kiss.”
About This Song
Duke Ellington wrote “Prelude to a Kiss” in 1938, with lyrics by Irving Mills and Irving Gordon. Ted Gioia in The Jazz Standards notes that in the late 1930s, having practically invented swing music, “… at this juncture he does the exact opposite. The Duke uses his fame and great artistic freedom to become more ambitious, more experimental, less beholden to the formulas of swing music. … ‘Prelude To A Kiss’ from 1938 is a case in point.”
About This Version
Tony Bennett recorded “Prelude to a Kiss” in 1999 for his album Bennett Sings Ellington: Hot & Cool, arranged by Jorge Calandrelli. The recording features Gray Sargent on guitar and Joel Smirnoff on violin.
“Prelude to a Kiss,” as well as Bennett Sings Ellington: Hot & Cool is available on Apple Music.
Here’s Ellington’s 1938 instrumental recording of “Prelude to a Kiss”
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