Origin:

Debuted in the 1938 film Romance in the Dark.

Style:

Almost always performed as a ballad.

Form:

A1-A2-B-A3 (32 Bars) [8-8-8-8]

Verse:

8 Bars

Seldom included in performances, Sarah Vaughan's 1941 recording features it.

Key:

Most commonly played in F Major.

Harmony/Overview:

The  harmony of this composition is very functional, and for the most part remains entirely diatonic. The A sections begin on IMaj7 before a II - V leads to IVMaj7 - IVdim7. A III - VI - II - V is then used, and each  section ends slightly differently. A1 uses yet another III -VI - II - V  to return to the tonic, while both A2 and A3 remain on IMaj7 for the  final 2 bars. The bridge is also extremely conventional, beginning with a  II - V of IMaj7 before a II - V of IVMaj7, and a IIImi7b5 - VI7 is then used to set-up a momentary stay on II7 before a final II - V returns to  the main theme.

Recordings:

This song has been recorded over 660 times to date. It debuted in the 1938 film Romance In the Dark,  and was first recorded by Chuck Bullock in 1940. The tune slowly began  to enter the repertoire on the leading jazz musicians of the day in the  late 1940's, and many notable recordings were made from the likes of  Sarah Vaughan, Charlie Parker, Gerry Mulligan, and Louis Armstrong to  name a few.

JGC Top Picks:

Warne Marsh, A Ballad Album, 1983

Roy Hargrove, Family, 1995

Michael Brecker and James Taylor, Nearness of You: The Ballad Book, 2000