The song of the day for Tuesday, June 17, 2014 is “Reflections.”

About This Song

The music for “Reflections” was written by Duke Ellington as a piano solo titled “Reflections in D” in 1953. The lyrics, written by Milton Raskin and Marjorie Houseman, were added later.

The piano solo was recorded by Bill Evans in 1978 at a concert at Carnegie Hall, released that year on the album New Conversations.

About This Version

Tony Bennett recorded “Reflections” for the first album released on his own Improv label, Life Is Beautiful. It was arranged by Torrie Zito and features Zito on piano, Chuck Hughes on drums and John Guiffrida on bass.

http://open.spotify.com/track/6gRs3mGqP2QjF6sZ5Uz4Y4
“Reflections,” as well as all of the songs collected on The Complete Improv Recordings, is available from iTunes.

And, if you’re interested, here is Ellington playing it himself, as recorded in April, 1953. It’s a beautiful piano solo by a great artist.

And, finally, Bill Evans from 1978 on New Conversations.