The song of the day for Wednesday, January 20, 2016 is “I’m Old Fashioned.”

About This Song

Today’s song, “I’m Old Fashioned,” was written in 1942 by Jerome Kern with lyrics by Johnny Mercer (does it get any better than this?). The song was written for the film You Were Never Lovelier, which starred Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire. It was introduced by Nan Wynn, who voiced the song for Rita Hayworth.

Johnny Mercer said of his collaboration with Kern:

We hit it off right away. I was in such awe of him, I think he must have sensed that. He was very kind to me, treated me more like a son than a collaborator. And when he thought I had a great lyric he said, ‘Eva, Eva, come down here’, and he kissed me on the cheek and he said, ‘Eva, I want you to hear this lyric’. Well, of course I was thrilled that he liked it that much, you know. ‘I’m Old Fashioned’, that one was.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “I’m Old Fashioned” with the Bill Charlap Trio for his 2015 album The Silver Lining: The Songs of Jerome Kern. In addition to Mr. Charlap on piano, the trio features Peter Washington on bass and Kenny Washington on drums.