The song of the day for Thursday, September 10, 2015 is “It’s Too Soon To Know.”

About This Song

“It’s Too Soon To Know” was a hit R&B song for The Orioles. It was written in 1948 by Deborah Chiseler. Deborah Chessler (a pen name for Shirley Reingold) was born in Baltimore, Maryland . Chessler not only wrote music, but managed The Orioles as well. In her obituary in the New York Daily News (she died in 2012) Richard Hinckley wrote that:

Her story was extraordinary in part because she was a young Jewish woman managing a black vocal group in an age when the entertainment industry, particularly in a Southern state like Maryland, was rigidly segregated.

She and her mother toured with the group everywhere, including the South, dealing with booking agents, theater owners and other showbiz officials who were not used to taking women seriously or treating black performers equally.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “It’s Too Soon To Know” on January 4, 1955. It was released that year as a single with another song by a female composer: “Close Your Eyes” by Bernice Petkere. Both were arranged and conducted by Percy Faith.

“It’s Too Soon To Know,” as well as all of the songs collected on The Columbia Singles, Vol. 3, is available from iTunes.