The song of the day for Monday, April 6, 2015 is “Stella By Starlight.”
About This Song
Today’s song, “Stella By Starlight,” was composed in 1944 by Victor Young for the film The Uninvited, which starred Ray Milland and Ruth Hussey. The lyrics by Ned Washington were added in 1946. It was recorded 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. It was arranged by Ralph Burns and produced by Ernie Altschuler.
About Today
Fifty-four years ago today, April 6, 1961, Tony Bennett and Ralph Burns recorded five songs for the album My Heart Sings: “Dancing In The Dark,” “The Rules Of The Road,” “It Never Was You,” My Ship” and today’s song, “Stella By Starlight.” In addition to the excellent arrangements by Burns, a fine group of musicians played on this album, including Bernie Leighton, Milt Hinton, Chuck Wayne and Eddie Costa. The entire album has a wonderful sound and well-worth a close listen. The date link will take you The Interactive Tony Bennett Discography topic on this session.
“Stella By Starlight,” as well as My Heart Sings, is available from iTunes.
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