The song of the day for Wednesday, January 17, 2024, is “Sweet Lorraine.”

About This Song

“Sweet Lorraine” was written in 1928 by Cliff Burwell and Mitchell Parish and was originally a vaudeville song. The initial Rudy Valle recording made the song popular as a nice, up-tempo jazz number. Nat King Cole had a major hit with this song in 1940.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Sweet Lorraine” on March 11, 1965, for his album If I Ruled The World: Songs For The Jet Set. In his autobiography The Good Life, Bennett tells the story behind this recording.

If I Ruled the World: Songs for the Jet Set also included a song that’s always been very special to me: “Sweet Lorraine. I dedicated it to Nat Cole, who had died a month earlier in February 1965. I was heartbroken when I heard that Nat had passed away. Bobby Hackett and I were working at the Palmer House in Chicago, and it seemed appropriate to pay tribute by recording Nat’s signature tune while we were in his hometown. Bobby, whose instrument was normally cornet, surprised us all by playing ukulele on this record; his buddy Joe Marsala played clarinet.

“Sweet Lorraine,” as well as If I Ruled The World: Songs For The Jet Set, is available on Apple Music.

I found this video of Nat King Cole singing today’s song. I hope you enjoy it.