Irving Mills Archives | The Year of Tony Bennett

June 3, 2026 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: Solitude

The song of the day for Wednesday, June 3, 2026, is “Solitude.”

Tony Bennett performed at Carnegie Hall in a two-act concert on June 9, 1962.

1962 was an important year for Tony Bennett: the release of “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” the Carnegie Hall concert, and the August White House concert at the invitation of President Kennedy.

From now through June 9, we’ll be playing songs from that concert.

About This Song

“Solitude” was written in 1934 by Duke Ellington, with lyrics by Eddie DeLange and Irving Mills. Ellington is said to have written “Solitude” in 20 minutes. Ellington and his band arrived at a recording studio, and found out that they needed to recorded another song in addition to the 3 songs scheduled. It’s had many fine recordings, including those by Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Benny Goodman, Sonny Rollins, and Ellington/

About This Version

Tony Bennett sang “Solitude” live at Carnegie Hall on June 9, 1962. A recording of the album, Tony Bennett Live at Carnegie Hall, was released in August 1962.

“Solitude,” as well as Tony Bennett at Carnegie Hall, is available on Apple Music.

Here’s Ellington’s 1940 recording of “Solitude,” with Ivie Anderson on vocals.

April 29, 2026 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: Mood Indigo

The song of the day for Wednesday, April 29, 2026, is “Mood Indigo.”

About Today

Today is the anniversary of the birth of Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington, who was born on April 29, 1899, in Washington, D.C. There aren’t enough superlatives to describe Ellington, but Tony Bennett summed it up:

Duke Ellington was a genius. He was unfailingly courteous and generous, but he kept to himself a lot. Who else could understand the depth of what went on inside his brilliant mind?

About This Song

“Mood Indigo” was written in 1930 by Duke Ellington and Barney Bigard, with lyrics by Irving Mills.

Originally titled “Dreamy Blues,” Ellington wrote this song, which is based on a theme by Barney Bigard, who is said to have learned it from his New Orleans clarinet teacher, Lorenzo Tio. Ellington wrote the song specifically for “microphone transmission” and it was first played on a 1930 radio broadcast. Audiences loved the song, and so Irving Mills wrote the lyric, changing the name of the song to “Mood Indigo.” The song has been widely recorded by instrumental and vocal artists, including Tony Bennett, Charles Mingus, Ella Fitzgerald, Thelonious Monk, Frank Sinatra, and Nat King Cole.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Mood Indigo” in May 1999 for Bennett Sings Ellington/Hot and Cool. Jorge Calandrelli wrote the arrangement.

“Mood Indigo,” as well as Bennett Sings Ellington/Hot and Cool, is available on Apple Music.

We’ve got a nice 1931 recording by Ellington of “Mood Indigo.”

April 10, 2026 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: Sophisticated Lady

The song of the day for Friday, April 10, 2025, is “Sophisticated Lady.”

About This Song

“Sophisticated Lady” was written in 1932 by Duke Ellington, with lyrics by Mitchell Parish and Irving Mills. Ellington wrote it as an instrumental named “Never No Lament,” but changed the title to “Sophisticated Lady” after the lyrics were added.

Ellington is said to have been inspired to write this song by two of his grade school teachers, who toured Europe in the summers after teaching all year. “To me that spelled sophistication.” “Sophisticated Lady” was first recorded in 1933 on the flip side with Harold Arlen’s “Stormy Weather.” It is, of course, one of Ellington’s most popular and often-played songs. In addition to numerous recordings by Ellington over the years, the song has been recorded by Art Tatum, Anita O’Day, Billie Holiday, Billy Eckstine, Johnny Hodges, Sarah Vaughan, and Glenn Miller.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Sophisticated Lady” in May 1999 for Bennett Sings Ellington: Hot & Cool. Jorge Calandrelli wrote the arrangement.

“Sophisticated Lady,” as well as Bennett Sings Ellington: Hot & Cool, is available on Apple Music.

We have Ellington’s 1933 recording of “Sophisticated Lady” with Johnny Hodges, Barney Bigard, Juan Tizol, Cootie Williams, Harry Carney and more:

March 14, 2026 By Suzanne Leave a Comment

Song of the Day: It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing)

The song of the day for Sunday, March 15, 2026, is “It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing).”

About This Song

“It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing)” was written in 1931 by Duke Ellington and Irving Mills. This song was one of the first songs to use the word “swing” in the title and this song certainly defined what it meant to swing. Ellington recorded the song with Ivie Anderson on vocals and it was an immediate hit. It has been widely recorded since it was written and the song is a lot of fun to play and to listen to. Significant recordings include those by Louis Armstrong, Django Reinhardt, Gigi Gryce, Tony Bennett, and Thelonious Monk.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing)” in May 1999 for Bennett Sings Ellington: Hot & Cool. Ralph Burns wrote the arrangement and conducted the big band.

Bennett Sings Ellington: Hot & Cool won the 2000 Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance.

“It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing),” as well as Bennett Sings Ellington: Hot & Cool, is available on Apple Music.

Dear Mr. Bennett

The John Pizzarelli Trio (Pizzarelli on guitar and vocals, Michael Karn on bass, and Isaiah J. Thompson on piano) recorded “It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing)” for Dear Mr. Bennett, released in March 2026.

Dear Mr. Bennett is available for purchase on CD and vinyl at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Tower Records, and other record stores. It is also available on most popular streaming services.

We’ve got Duke Ellington’s band and Ivie Anderson on vocals singing “It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing).”