Oh, Lady be Good!
Encyclopedia
"Oh, Lady be Good!" is a 1924 (see 1924 in music
) song by George
and Ira Gershwin
.
The song was introduced by Walter Catlett
in the Broadway
show, Lady, Be Good!
, written by Guy Bolton
, Fred Thompson
, and the Gershwin brothers, starring Fred Astaire
and Adele Astaire
. It ran for 330 performances in its original Broadway run. The song is also performed in the 1941 film, Lady Be Good
, though the film itself is unrelated to the musical play.
A 1947 recording of the song became a hit for Ella Fitzgerald
, notable for her scat
solo. The song became readily identified with Fitzgerald, and she sang it many times in live performance. For her album Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Songbook
(1959), Oh, Lady be Good! was sung as a ballad, arranged by Nelson Riddle
.
1924 in music
-Events:*February 18 – First recordings by Bix Beiderbecke*February 24 – An Experiment In Modern Music concert at Aeolian Hall, New York – première of Rhapsody in Blue.*June – Alexander von Zemlinsky's Lyric Symphony is premiered in Prague....
) song by George
George Gershwin
George Gershwin was an American composer and pianist. Gershwin's compositions spanned both popular and classical genres, and his most popular melodies are widely known...
and Ira Gershwin
Ira Gershwin
Ira Gershwin was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs of the 20th century....
.
The song was introduced by Walter Catlett
Walter Catlett
Walter Catlett was an American actor. As a San Francisco citizen, he started out in vaudeville with a detour for a while in opera before breaking into films.-Early career:...
in the Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
show, Lady, Be Good!
Lady Be Good (musical)
Lady, Be Good is a musical written by Guy Bolton and Fred Thompson with music by George and lyrics by Ira Gershwin. It was first presented on Broadway in 1924; the West End production followed in 1926...
, written by Guy Bolton
Guy Bolton
Guy Reginald Bolton was a British-American playwright and writer of musical comedies. Born in England and educated in France and the U.S., he trained as an architect but turned to writing. Bolton preferred working in collaboration with others, principally the English writers P. G...
, Fred Thompson
Fred Thompson (writer)
Frederick A. Thompson, usually credited as Fred Thompson was an English writer, best known as a librettist for about fifty British and American musical comedies from World War I to World War II. Among the writers with whom he collaborated were George Grossmith Jr., P. G. Wodehouse, Guy Bolton and...
, and the Gershwin brothers, starring Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire was an American film and Broadway stage dancer, choreographer, singer and actor. His stage and subsequent film career spanned a total of 76 years, during which he made 31 musical films. He was named the fifth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute...
and Adele Astaire
Adele Astaire
Lady Charles Cavendish , better known as Adele Astaire, was an American dancer and entertainer. She was Fred Astaire's elder sister. Her birthdate was often given as 1897 or 1898, but the 1900 U.S...
. It ran for 330 performances in its original Broadway run. The song is also performed in the 1941 film, Lady Be Good
Lady Be Good (1941 film)
Lady Be Good is the title of an MGM musical film which was released in 1941.The film starred dancer Eleanor Powell along with Ann Sothern, Robert Young, Lionel Barrymore, and Red Skelton. It was directed by Norman Z. McLeod and produced by Arthur Freed...
, though the film itself is unrelated to the musical play.
A 1947 recording of the song became a hit for 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...
, notable for her scat
Scat singing
In vocal jazz, scat singing is vocal improvisation with wordless vocables, nonsense syllables or without words at all. Scat singing gives singers the ability to sing improvised melodies and rhythms, to create the equivalent of an instrumental solo using their voice.- Structure and syllable choice...
solo. The song became readily identified with Fitzgerald, and she sang it many times in live performance. For her album Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Songbook
Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Songbook
Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Songbook is a 1959 five album set by the American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, focusing on the songs of George and Ira Gershwin. It was recorded with the Nelson Riddle Orchestra, marking the first time that Ella and Riddle had worked together...
(1959), Oh, Lady be Good! was sung as a ballad, arranged by Nelson Riddle
Nelson Riddle
Nelson Smock Riddle, Jr. was an American arranger, composer, bandleader and orchestrator whose career stretched from the late 1940s to the mid 1980s...
.
Recorded versions
- Fred AstaireFred AstaireFred Astaire was an American film and Broadway stage dancer, choreographer, singer and actor. His stage and subsequent film career spanned a total of 76 years, during which he made 31 musical films. He was named the fifth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute...
- rec. December 1952 - from the LP "The Fred Astaire Story" - Buck and Bubbles - rec. December 26, 1933 - released as Columbia 2873-D, matrix W 152661-3
- Cliff "Ukelele Ike" Edwards - rec. January 2, 1925 - released as Pathe 025130, matrix 105767
- Charlie ParkerCharlie ParkerCharles Parker, Jr. , famously called Bird or Yardbird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer....
- rec. at the Philharmonic Auditorium (Los Angeles, California), January 28, 1946, as part of the Jazz At The PhilharmonicJazz at the PhilharmonicJazz at the Philharmonic, or JATP, was the title of a series of jazz concerts, tours and recordings produced by Norman Granz....
series - Ella FitzgeraldElla FitzgeraldElla Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
- rec. March 18, 1947 - released as Decca 23956, matrix 73820 - Ella FitzgeraldElla FitzgeraldElla Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
- rec. 1959 - from Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin SongbookElla Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin SongbookElla Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Songbook is a 1959 five album set by the American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, focusing on the songs of George and Ira Gershwin. It was recorded with the Nelson Riddle Orchestra, marking the first time that Ella and Riddle had worked together... - Buddy LeeBuddy LeeBuddy Lee was an advertising mascot for Lee Jeans. The doll, a promotional item for the company from 1920 to 1962, was brought back as the star of television advertising for the company's Lee Dungarees line from 1998 until the mid-2000s....
with the Gilt-Edged Four - rec. May 17, 1926 - released as Columbia 3981, matrix WA 3256 - Benny GoodmanBenny GoodmanBenjamin David “Benny” Goodman was an American jazz and swing musician, clarinetist and bandleader; widely known as the "King of Swing".In the mid-1930s, Benny Goodman led one of the most popular musical groups in America...
Trio - rec. 1935 - The GordonsThe GordonsThe Gordons may refer to:*The Gordons - Folk/bluegrass duo consisting of Gary Gordon and Roberta Gordon.*Bailter Space - At one time, called "The Gordons".*The Gordons...
with Dizzy GillespieDizzy GillespieJohn Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
and Stuff SmithStuff SmithHezekiah Leroy Gordon Smith , better known as Stuff Smith, was a jazz violinist. He is known well for the song "If You're a Viper".-Biography:...
- rec. April 17, 1957 - Jack HyltonJack HyltonJack Hylton was a British band leader and impresario.He was born John Greenhalgh Hilton in the Great Lever area of Bolton, Lancashire, the son of George Hilton, a cotton yarn twister. His father was an amateur singer at the local Labour Club and Jack learned piano to accompany him on the stage...
And His Orchestra - rec. March 29, 1926 - released as Bb 8191-2 - Jones-Smith Incorporated (feat. Lester YoungLester YoungLester Willis Young , nicknamed "Prez", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and clarinetist. He also played trumpet, violin, and drums....
and Count BasieCount BasieWilliam "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years...
) - rec. October 9, 1936 - released as Vocalion 3459, matrix C-1660-1 - Artie ShawArtie ShawArthur Jacob Arshawsky , better known as Artie Shaw, was an American jazz clarinetist, composer, and bandleader. He was also the author of both fiction and non-fiction writings....
And His Orchestra - rec. 1938 - from the short "Artie Shaw's Symphony In Swing" (1939)