Artist: Walter Catlett
Author: George Gershwin/Ira Gershwin
Year: 1924
In Broadway musical Lady Be Good, originally titled Black-Eyed Susan, but this song was so enchanting the whole production was renamed after it. Fascinating Rhythm was another song introduced in this musical.
Covers:
Paul Whiteman [oldest recording, with a short musical part about 2 minutes into the track, clearly re-used by Irving Berlin in Puttin' On The Ritz 6 years later!]
Count Basie [for contractual reasons as Jones-Smith Inc.]
Slim & Slam [Slim Gaillard & Slam Stewart]
Red Skelton [in film Lady Be Good]
Fred Astaire [he was also featured in the original musical along with his sister Adele]
Lee Konitz [with Gerry Mulligan]
When Al Jolson adopted his Swanee in 1919, George Gershwin was sweet 21. That hit from Simbad worked as Sesame: all Broadway doors swinged wide open for that energetic youngster they already knew as the piano playing prodigy plugging songs since when he was 15. And so George's story started even before the roaring twenties kicked off, before the radio days, before private record collections, when middle class gathered around the family piano for home entertainment, making their own music. Popularity in those days wasn't measured in virtuosity but simplicity. If grandma or cousin Ernie could play it, everybody could and so the sheetmusic sold. Gershwin's music was so simple and natural you couldn't play it wrong. Even badly played it still sounded good enough. Just like on Broadway, where Irving Berlin and Jerome Kern were the touchstone composers. Jewish immigrant George Gershwin just had to step in their Jewish immigrant footsteps. A good tune needs fitting lyrics; composer and lyricist were two different trades on Tin Pan Alley. The best partner George Gershwin ever had was his own older brother Ira. Their differences, George exuberant, Ira rather intimate, matched perfectly.
If you noticed blunt omissions, mis-interpretations or even out-and-out errors,
please let me know:
Arnold Rypens
Rozenlaan 65
B-2840 Reet (Rumst)