The Ladies Sing the Songs of Arlen & Koehler

Clockwise: Diana Krall; Judy Garland; Barbra Streisand; and Will Swenson with Patti LuPone & Audra McDonald.

This week, I am taking my inspiration from a songwriting team, composer Harold Arlen and lyricist by Ted Koehler. The duo began working together in the 1920s, and continued writing together through the 1940s. During that period, they both also worked with others. They wrote for vaudeville, as well as for Broadway and Hollywood. During the 1930s, they also wrote songs for The Cotton Club, Harlem's top nightclub. There the music was performed by some of the great names in Jazz, including legendary performer Duke Ellington. Many of their songs became hits, and the artists were lining up to sing them. That would be the artists back in the day, and the artists today. The first song we'll hear is "Let's Fall In Love", written in 1933. The song was originally intended to be a nice, upbeat song, but soon many singers were putting a swing beat on it, making it the song we all know. In 1999, Jazz artist Diana Krall recorded the song for her album 'When I Look Into Your Eyes', and often played it at live shows. So here is Mrs. Elvis Costello, although you might know her as Diana Krall, singing "Let's Fall In Love".

Now, whenever Judy Garland sings a song, it becomes a classic. And when she takes on a song with music by Harold Arlen, something magical happens. Such is the case when she sang a little song in the movie 'Wizard of Oz', called "Over The Rainbow". And it certainly was not the last of Arlen's songs Judy took on. There were so many, it would be hard to remember them all. But one such song was "I've Gotta Right to Sing the Blues", written for the Broadway show, Earl Carroll's 'Vanities', which opened in 1932. It was recorded by some of the great big bands of the day, like Cab Dalloway &His Orchestra, Louis Armstrong & His Orchestra, Lee Willey & The Dorsey Brothers, and Benny Goodman & His Orchestra. The song remained popular, so it is no surprise it was recorded for her 1957 album, 'Alone'. This is Judy Garland singing "I've Gotta Right to Sing the Blues" live on 'The Judy Garland Show' in the 1960s.

The next song was written in 1929, and could be one of the more popular songs, if not the most popular of the great songs they have written. They wrote the song as a Gospel-like song, and it was first recorded by Ruth Etting in the Broadway show, 'The Nine-Fifteen Revue'. The show was not a success, closing after a one week run. The song could have easily gone away, but that was not to be. When people think of the song "Get Happy", it is the huge musical number featuring Judy Garland singing "Get Happy" in the 1950 MGM musical, 'Summer Stock'. Soon the song was a signature tune for the singer, and over a decade later, when she was performing on her television show, Garland sang with while a young Barbra Streisand sang one of her early hits, Happy Days Are Here Again", written by Milton Ager & Jack Yellen. This was a showstopper, and Streisand was nominated for an Emmy for her appearance on the show. The moment was so iconic, it was recreated by Ryan Murphy on 'Glee', featuring Lea Michele and Chris Colfer. They were not the only duo to reference the pair. As part of a PBS Special, the glorious Audra McDonald invited her friend Patti LuPone to play Judy and Barbra as they sing "Happy Days Are Hear Again/Get Happy".

The final entry tonight was written in 1941, and first sung by Helen O'Connell and the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra. But it was really more than twenty years before the most notable recording was made of the song, by a young girl in New York City. In October of 1962, Barbra Streisand recorded her first version of the song, and it was released as a single. The B-side was "Happy Days Are Here Again". I guess people liked it, because the following year, Streisand was back in the studio to record a new version for 'The Second Barbra Streisand Album'. This is a wonderful video of Streisand singing "When The Sun Comes Out" live on her 1965 television special, "My Name Is Barbra"

Have a great weekend!

Torch, Arlen Style

Clockwise: Helen O'Connell; Eva Cassidy; Aretha Franklin; and Dinah Washington.

Tonight I am inspired by the music of the great Harold Arlen. Truthfully, it started this morning when a song come to mind, and I just kept humming it. But first, more about the man. In 1905, Arlen was born Hyman Arluck, in Buffalo, New York, United States, the child of a Jewish cantor. He took piano lessons as a child, became a popular act in the Buffalo area. In his twenties, he made his way to New York City, and soon changed his name to Harold Arlen. In the 1930s, he and lyricist Ted Koehler worked together often, and had a regular gig writing songs to be performed at the popular Harlem nightclub, The Cotton Club. Arlen also began writing music for both Broadway and Hollywood musicals, as well as for popular singers of the day. This brings me back to my inspiration for this post, that song that kept playing in my head. While I will admit it was the Barbra Streisand version, it was "When The Sun Comes Out" that was playing loud and clear. The song was written by Arlen in 1941 with Ted Koehler, and originally sung by Helen O'Connell with the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra. And so I picked that version to play here, for it is really wonderful.

Arlen also worked with other lyricists, some of the best around. In 1941, he was writing with Johnny Mercer on a film with the working title 'Hot Nocturne'. They wrote a great song, introduced in the movie by William Gillespie. That song was "Blues In The Night", and soon the movie title was changed to match the song. And the song quickly became a standard, a part of the Great American Songbook, and recorded by some of the biggest names in the music business. I picked a version that was recorded in 1997, by the late Eva Cassidy. Cassidy, who passed away the year before, was working on the album at the time of her death. Eva had a magical way to blend her acoustic Pop and Blues roots to make amazing music, and loved taking on some of the iconic music. Here is her recording of "Blues In The Night".

In 1954, Arlen released another project written for the great Judy Garland. He had, of course, worked with her earlier, when he worked on a little film named 'The Wizard of Oz'. So when he began working on the film 'A Star Is Born' with lyricist Ira Gershwin, everyone had to know magic was bound to happen. And it most certainly did. I still remember quite vividly the scene in 'A Star Is Born' when Esther Blodgett, played by Judy, is jamming with some studio musicians and she sings "The Man That Got Away". It was magnificent. But I've had Judy singing the song on the blog before, and decided to try something a little different, so here is a lovely version by Dinah Washington, recorded for her 1962 album 'Drinking Again'.

And, if I was covering the music of Harold Arlen, I couldn't ignore the great song written, according to lore, in front of a drug store in Hollywood in 1938, could I? Legend has it while driving up Sunset Boulevard after a rain, Arlen noticed a rainbow over the iconic Schwab's Drug Store, and it inspired a song for the project he was working on. He was writing the music for the musical 'The Wizard of Oz' with E. Y. Harburg, which became a huge hit in 1939. That would include the song sung by Judy Garland, "Over The Rainbow". And once again, I have posted Judy singing it before, so I tried to find something new, and was thrilled when I found this version by Aretha Franklin, which is truly wonderful. Enjoy.

Have a great weekend!