Why this tune?
This week’s song is another one from the American songbook, a pop song from 1940 written by Matt Dennis and Tom Adair. It was a hit for Frank Sinatra, singing with Tommy Dorsey’s band, and entered the jazz repertoire soon after, recorded by Charlie Parker, Bud Powell, and many others.
I’m attracted to the details in Tom Adair’s lyrics, describing the life of someone for whom
everything goes wrong, including (of course) love. The lyric shows its age, with details of life in 1940 that are harder to relate to now, like the telegraph and “air mail special.” You can also tell that the lyricist was thinking about apartment life in the city, with upstairs neighbors and missed trains.
Perhaps this song is due for a 21st century refresh (I tried it with Ain’t Misbehavin’). There’s precedent for it – according to jazzstandards.com, Matt Dennis once added lyrics about the pitfalls of playing in a nightclub when he performed the song live.
Tunes On Tuesday Reel
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Sinatra and Dorsey
Chet Baker
Oren Levine, jazz pianist and songwriter 