Style:

Initially introduced at a medium slow swing, it has since taken a wide variety of treatments.

Form:

A-B-A-C (32 Bars) [8-8-8-8]

Verse:

A-B-C (12 Bars) [4-4-4]

The  12 bar introductory verse is seldom played. Ruth Etting’s 1931 recording is one of the very few vocal renditions to include it.

Key:

Although  this song has come to be most commonly played in C Major many of its  initial recordings take varying keys. Ruth Etting sang it in F, Mildred  Bailey in G, and Louis Armstrong in Bb. Musicians such as Oscar Peterson  and Charlie Parker performed it in Ab.

Harmony/Overview:

The  harmony is very much in line with other leading standards of the era  and is very functional. The A sections begin with the movement of I –  III7 and proceed to cycle through Dom7 and min7 chords in a predictable  manner. In place of the IV – IVmi in the final C section a common  reharmonization is instead use IV - #IVdim7.

Recordings:

This  tune has been recorded over 470 times. Belle Baker was the first to  introduce the song to the public over the radio in 1931, although the  first recording was made by Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra with Mildred  Bailey on vocals the same year. Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, and  Frank Sinatra are some of the many vocalists who have left behind iconic  recordings of the standard.

JGC Top Picks:

Louis Armstrong, European Concert Recordings by Ambassador Satch, 1955

Oscar Peterson, A Jazz Portrait of Frank Sinatra, 1959

Earl Hines, An Evening with Earl Hines, 1972