Midnight Sun(song)
Encyclopedia
"Midnight Sun" was originally an instrumental composed by Lionel Hampton
and Sonny Burke
in 1947 and is now considered a jazz standard
. Subsequently, Johnny Mercer
wrote the words to the song. One famous recording of the song with the Mercer lyrics is by Ella Fitzgerald
on her album Like Someone in Love (1957).
Johnny Mercer was driving along the freeway from Palm Springs
to Hollywood, California
, when he heard the instrumental on his car radio and started to set words to the song as he drove.
Lionel Hampton
Lionel Leo Hampton was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, bandleader and actor. Like Red Norvo, he was one of the first jazz vibraphone players. Hampton ranks among the great names in jazz history, having worked with a who's who of jazz musicians, from Benny Goodman and Buddy...
and Sonny Burke
Sonny Burke
Sonny Burke was a big band leader. In 1937, he graduated from Duke University where he had formed and led the jazz big band known as the Duke Ambassadors....
in 1947 and is now considered a jazz standard
Jazz standard
Jazz standards are musical compositions which are an important part of the musical repertoire of jazz musicians, in that they are widely known, performed, and recorded by jazz musicians, and widely known by listeners. There is no definitive list of jazz standards, and the list of songs deemed to be...
. Subsequently, Johnny Mercer
Johnny Mercer
John Herndon "Johnny" Mercer was an American lyricist, songwriter and singer. He is best known as a lyricist, but he also composed music. He was also a popular singer who recorded his own songs as well as those written by others...
wrote the words to the song. One famous recording of the song with the Mercer lyrics is by Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
on her album Like Someone in Love (1957).
Story behind the lyrics
According to Phillip Furia,Johnny Mercer was driving along the freeway from Palm Springs
Palm Springs, California
Palm Springs is a desert city in Riverside County, California, within the Coachella Valley. It is located approximately 37 miles east of San Bernardino, 111 miles east of Los Angeles and 136 miles northeast of San Diego...
to Hollywood, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, when he heard the instrumental on his car radio and started to set words to the song as he drove.
Notable recordings
- Original instrumental recording by the Lionel Hampton OrchestraLionel HamptonLionel Leo Hampton was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, bandleader and actor. Like Red Norvo, he was one of the first jazz vibraphone players. Hampton ranks among the great names in jazz history, having worked with a who's who of jazz musicians, from Benny Goodman and Buddy...
in 1947 (Decca L 4546, 1947)
- Dee Dee BridgewaterDee Dee BridgewaterDee Dee Bridgewater is an American Jazz singer. She is a three-time Grammy Award winning singer-songwriter, as well as a Tony Award - winning stage actress and host of National Public Radio's syndicated radio show JazzSet with Dee Dee Bridgewater...
- Live at Yoshi's (1998) - June ChristyJune ChristyJune Christy , born Shirley Luster, was an American singer, known for her work in the cool jazz genre and for her silky smooth vocals. Her success as a singer began with The Stan Kenton Orchestra. She pursued a solo career from 1954 and is best known for her debut album Something Cool...
- Something CoolSomething CoolSomething Cool is a studio album recorded by June Christy in 1953, 1954, and 1955, and featuring Christy singing 11 jazz songs backed by the orchestra of Pete Rugolo...
(1954), Road Show (1959), A Lovely Way to Spend An EveningA Lovely Way to Spend an Evening (album)A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening # “A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening” # “From This Moment On”...
(1986) - Bob DoroughBob DoroughBob Dorough is an American bebop and cool jazz pianist, composer and vocalese singer.He worked with Miles Davis and Allen Ginsberg, and his adventurous style was an influence on Mose Allison, among other singers...
- Devil May Care (1956) - Ella FitzgeraldElla FitzgeraldElla Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
- Like Someone in Love (1957) and Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Johnny Mercer SongbookElla Fitzgerald Sings the Johnny Mercer SongbookElla Fitzgerald Sings the Johnny Mercer Song Book is a 1964 studio album by the American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, with the Nelson Riddle Orchestra, focusing on the songs of Johnny Mercer. This was Fitzgerald's fifth and final collaboration with Riddle during her years on the Verve label...
(1964) - Al JarreauAl JarreauAlwin "Al" Lopez Jarreau is a seven-time Grammy Award winning jazz singer.- Background :Jarreau was born in Milwaukee, the fifth of six children. His web site refers to Reservoir, Inc., the name of the street where he lived. His father was a Seventh-Day Adventist Church minister and singer, and...
- Accentuate the PositiveAccentuate the Positive (album)Accentuate the Positive is an album recorded in 2004 by singer Al Jarreau based around songs from the 1940s.- Tracklisting :# "Cold Duck" # "The Nearness of You"...
(2004) - Dianne ReevesDianne ReevesDianne Reeves is an American jazz singer. She currently lives in Denver, Colorado.-Early life:Reeves was born in Detroit, Michigan to a very musical family. Her father, who died when she was two years old, was also a singer. Her mother, Vada Swanson, played trumpet. A cousin, George Duke, is a...
- When you knowWhen You KnowWhen You Know is an album by American jazz singer Dianne Reeves released in 2008.-Track listing:...
(2008) - Diane SchuurDiane SchuurDiane Schuur is an American jazz singer and pianist. Nicknamed "Deedles", she has won two Grammy Awards, headlined many of the world's most prestigious music venues, including Carnegie Hall and The White House and has toured the world performing with such greats as Quincy Jones, Stan Getz, B. B...
and Maynard FergusonMaynard FergusonMaynard Ferguson was a Canadian jazz musician and bandleader. He came to prominence playing in Stan Kenton's orchestra, before forming his own band in 1957...
- Swingin' for SchuurSwingin' for SchuurSwingin' for Schuur is a 2001 album by Diane Schuur and Maynard Ferguson, accompanied by his Big Bop Nouveau big band .-Track listing:# "Just One of Those Things" – 4:09# "Bésame Mucho" – 5:20...
(2001) - Jo StaffordJo StaffordJo Elizabeth Stafford was an American singer of traditional pop music and jazz standards and occasional actress whose career ran from the late 1930s to the early 1960s...
- Jo + JazzJo + JazzJo + Jazz is a 1960 album recorded by Jo Stafford on Columbia Records. The album was also re-released in 1993 by Corinthian Records.For this album, Stafford is backed by a line-up of noted jazz musicians including Conte Candoli, Don Fagerquist, Russ Freeman, Johnny Hodges, Mel Lewis, Ray Nance,...
(1960) - Sarah VaughanSarah VaughanSarah Lois Vaughan was an American jazz singer, described by Scott Yanow as having "one of the most wondrous voices of the 20th century."...
- Sarah Sings SoulfullySarah Sings SoulfullySarah Sings Soulfully is a 1963 studio album by the American jazz singer Sarah Vaughan, arranged by Gerald Wilson. -Reception:The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album four stars and a half said that "Sarah Vaughan's final Roulette session before going back to Mercury was one of her best...
(1963) - Mel TorméMel TorméMelvin Howard Tormé , nicknamed The Velvet Fog, was an American musician, known for his jazz singing. He was also a jazz composer and arranger, a drummer, an actor in radio, film, and television, and the author of five books...
- A Vintage YearA Vintage Year-Track listing:# "Whisper Not"/"Love Me or Leave Me" , – 4:17# "Out of This World" – 5:11# "Someday I'll Find You" – 2:52...
(1987) - Weather ReportWeather ReportWeather Report was an American jazz-rock band of the 1970s and early 1980s. The band was co-led by the Austrian-born keyboard player Joe Zawinul and the American saxophonist Wayne Shorter...
- live concert in Offenbach, GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, 1978