The song of the day for Thursday, January 26, 2023, is “Prelude To A Kiss.”
About This Song
“Prelude To A Kiss” was written in 1938 by Duke Ellington, with lyrics by Irving Gordon and Irving Mills. 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 May 1999 for Bennett Sings Ellington Hot & Cool. Featured on this recording are 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 first recording of “Prelude To A Kiss,” an instrumental, featuring the impeccable Johnny Hodges:
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