Melodically this is one tune that most singers won't even attempt. The chord changes are difficult, but Ella, as usual, just hears everything and sings it perfectly.
@@mollywolly4201 I can’t imagine a 17 year old writing something like this without having gone through hell. At the very least it caused him to give birth to something beautiful, and that’s an understatement.
You hit the nail on the head. I would SO love to hear her version of Guess Who I Saw Today; I’d think it must have been in her repertoire but I can’t find it. Of course Nancy Wilson’s rendition is flawless; then I made the mistake of listening to Eydie Gorme’s take. Wow. Ripe, lush string section (so wrong IMO)…and she substituted the word COFFEE for MARTINI. Extremely odd. Different strokes!
Billy Strayhorn was ahead of his time, a virtuoso, and a savant. As a composer and arranger, the fact that he wrote this at 16 or 17 just boggles the mind of an ordinary person. He also had the courage to be openly gay as a black man at a time when that was unheard of. He is definitely on my list of remarkable human beings and his collaborations with Duke Ellington led to some of the most well loved songs in the American Songbook. In fact, Duke Ellington may not have reached the heights of success that he did if it were not for his collaborations with Billy Strayhorn.
Ellington's talent and success was established well before his collaborations with Strayhorn. What I would say, however, is that their collaborations are a demonstrable instance of the following ... 1+1 > 2
@siddiqahmad5193 i would say 1+1=3! Lol I think collaboration of these two brilliant men created a little extra. So sad he died at the age of 52 at least in part because of his alcoholism:-(
I so agree with you! Ella was unmatched in her interpretation of a lyric. And Duke well what is there to say but the king of it all. I still am in shock that a 16 or 17 year old wrote such a deep song at that age in a Pittsburg, PA Drug Store....Billy Strayhorn was a brilliant man. Natalie Cole's version of this song is also fabulous.
Singing is like breathing to artists like this. They just effortlessly flow from the top and to the bottom of their range and vice versa. Johnny Mathis, Karen Carpenter, Roy Orbison…….
The best rendition I have listened to, and I have heard numerous recordings to date (yr 2021) of Lush Life by other greats!. Kudos to the phenomenal Ella and her collaboration with the Duke... Effortless! 🎶🎵
I will say Johnny Hartman's version from his album with John Coltrane is the best I've heard. Ella does a wonderful job and in my opinion the best general Ellington interpreter, but this particular song was written to be sung by a man. It's sung from a man's perspective. No one did it better than Johnny.
@@direfranchement I actually like it the most when Billy Strayhorn himself sings it. Hartman's is kind of too perfect, Billy is not close to being a singer Hartman is, but you could tell that he wrote it, he is feeling it, there is some raw emotion and depression and melancholy in that version.
Many have tried, few have hit homers with this song. Ella is one. Surprisingly, or maybe not, so is Lady Gaga. If you haven't heard her stunning live version, you should. She really connects to and milks the song for all it's got.
I used to visit all the very gay places Those come-what-may places Where one relaxes on the axis Of the wheel of life To get the feel of life From jazz and cocktails The gals (girls) I knew had sad and sullen gray faces With distingué traces That used to be there You could see where They'd been washed away By too many through the day Twelve o'clock tales Then you came along With your siren song To tempt me to madness I thought for awhile That your poignant smile Was tinged with the sadness Of a great love for me I guess (Ah, yes,) I was wrong Again, I was wrong Life is lonely again And only last year everything seemed so sure Now life is awful again A troughful of hearts could only be a bore A week in Paris might (will) ease the bite of it All I care is to smile in spite of it I'll forget you I will While yet you are still Burning inside my brain Romance is mush Stifling those who strive I'll live a lush life In some small dive And there I'll be While I rot with the rest Of those whose lives are lonely too Lush live
used to visit all the very gay places Those come-what-may places Where one relaxes on the axis of the wheel of life To get the feel of life from jazz and cocktails The girls I knew had sad and sullen gray faces With distinguish traces that used to be there You could see where they'd been washed away By too many through the day, twelve O'clock tales Then you came along with your siren song To tempt me to madness I thought for awhile that your poignant smile Was tinged with the sadness of a great love for me Ah, yes, I was wrong, again, I was wrong Life is lonely again and only last year Everything seemed so sure Now life is awful again a trough full of hearts Could only be a bore A week in Paris could ease the bite of it All I care is to smile in spite of it I'll forget you, I will while yet you are still Burning inside my brain Romance is mush stifling those who strive I'll live a lush life in some small dive And there I'll be while I rot with the rest Of those whose lives are lonely too Romance is mush stifling those who strive I'll live a lush life in some small dive And there I'll be while I rot with the rest Of those whose lives are lonely too
I used to visit all the very gay places Those come what may places Where one relaxes on the axis of the wheel of life To get the feel of life From jazz and cocktails. The girls I knew had sad and sullen gray faces With distingué traces That used to be there you could see where they'd been washed away By too many through the day Twelve o'clock tales. Then you came along with your siren song To tempt me to madness! I thought for a while that your poignant smile was tinged with the sadness Of a great love for me. Ah yes! I was wrong Again, I was wrong. Life is lonely again, And only last year everything seemed so sure. Now life is awful again, A trough full of hearts could only be a bore. A week in Paris will ease the bite of it, All I care is to smile in spite of it. I'll forget you, I will While yet you are still burning inside my brain. Romance is mush, Stifling those who strive. I'll live a lush life in some small dive And there I'll be, while I rot With the rest of those whose lives are lonely, too
Frank Sinatra attempted this song for his “Only the Lonely” album in 1958: [ ruclips.net/video/Vj7S7DER3Bg/видео.htmlsi=UDPUYzyV3E0NhpX8 ] Nelson Riddle provided a lush orchestral accompaniment for him. Unfortunately, during the recording session, Frank found the vocal dynamics were very difficult, frustrating and abandoned the project. After listening to this outtake, I think that he should have stuck with it until he got it.
@@margeshilling7983 Glad you liked it. I enjoyed the Queen Latifah, too. Thanks for posting that. Ella + Duke and Strayhorn's own version may have phrasing more as Lush Life was written but I like the more laid back Latifah and Hartman ones. [Edit - Latifah-Gaga flub, sheesh]
Really hard to sing. Ella's version loses the melancholy of the song. It's more of a spoken word piece. The singer has to be careful not to over sing it.
wonderful Singer, increidible pianist Ellington is just full of Wows
Melodically this is one tune that most singers won't even attempt. The chord changes are difficult, but Ella, as usual, just hears everything and sings it perfectly.
1,000,000% agree!!!
Other planetary
it's far from perfect. she makes tons and tons of mistakes. it is in fact a terrible performance as all her other performances are.
very funny, Lazarus.@@Lazarus1001
Two words... Johnny Hartman !
Could you believe that Billy Staryhorn wrote Lush Life when he was seventeen years old .
Such great lyrics full with a sense of realism and pain !
Absolutely gives me chills! (thought it was 16 years old ....? I may be off a year)
At 16, I didn't even know what I wanted to eat for lunch. Simply amazing...
Incredible! What a great thing to know.
I knew he wrote it but had no idea he wrote it at 17. Astounding. How he could even imagine these things at that age. 👏👏❤️❤️. Thank you.
@@mollywolly4201 I can’t imagine a 17 year old writing something like this without having gone through hell. At the very least it caused him to give birth to something beautiful, and that’s an understatement.
Ella's storytelling ability. Breathtaking.
You hit the nail on the head. I would SO love to hear her version of Guess Who I Saw Today; I’d think it must have been in her repertoire but I can’t find it. Of course Nancy Wilson’s rendition is flawless; then I made the mistake of listening to Eydie Gorme’s take. Wow. Ripe, lush string section (so wrong IMO)…and she substituted the word COFFEE for MARTINI. Extremely odd. Different strokes!
Billy Strayhorn was ahead of his time, a virtuoso, and a savant. As a composer and arranger, the fact that he wrote this at 16 or 17 just boggles the mind of an ordinary person. He also had the courage to be openly gay as a black man at a time when that was unheard of. He is definitely on my list of remarkable human beings and his collaborations with Duke Ellington led to some of the most well loved songs in the American Songbook. In fact, Duke Ellington may not have reached the heights of success that he did if it were not for his collaborations with Billy Strayhorn.
Ellington's talent and success was established well before his collaborations with Strayhorn. What I would say, however, is that their collaborations are a demonstrable instance of the following ... 1+1 > 2
Yep!
My uncle was in Westinghouse High School when he wrote this.
@siddiqahmad5193 i would say 1+1=3! Lol I think collaboration of these two brilliant men created a little extra. So sad he died at the age of 52 at least in part because of his alcoholism:-(
I so agree with you! Ella was unmatched in her interpretation of a lyric. And Duke well what is there to say but the king of it all.
I still am in shock that a 16 or 17 year old wrote such a deep song at that age in a Pittsburg, PA Drug Store....Billy Strayhorn was a brilliant man. Natalie Cole's version of this song is also fabulous.
So many versions, but Ella connected the dots and made it sound like the most natural and honest thing in the world.
Yep!!
This woman was incredible.
My god this was good! His amazing piano skills following her every perfect note. Whew!!!!!
One of the greatest songs ever written, played by one of the greatest singers and one of the greatest composers.
Singing is like breathing to artists like this. They just effortlessly flow from the top and to the bottom of their range and vice versa. Johnny Mathis, Karen Carpenter, Roy Orbison…….
Yes! Karen Carpenter...one of my all time favorite singers!!!!!
Exquisite flawless singing, phrasing, breath control by the great Ella!
another time, another place, another planet....
Two icons that you can’t duplicate. 🎼
Wow!👍♥️👍Great!♥️
Imagine singing with Duke Ellington!!! Wow!
Imagine playing with Ella
Imagine listening to Ella and Duke making music together.
Imagine being there!
@@marcellomentasimonsennico5670 I would have so loved to be there, a dream!
Classic song. Thank you, Billy.
No one interpreted Duke Ellington better than Ella. Two Taurean geniuses. Get Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Songbook if you don't have it.
true, but do be aware this is a Strayhorn tune
Ella and the Duke were Taureans, Billy Strayhorn was a Sagittarian.
Thanks for the recommendation
I will definitely get that album. Thank you!
Jesus! What perfection. 🙏🏻
The best rendition I have listened to, and I have heard numerous recordings to date (yr 2021) of Lush Life by other greats!. Kudos to the phenomenal Ella and her collaboration with the Duke... Effortless! 🎶🎵
I will say Johnny Hartman's version from his album with John Coltrane is the best I've heard. Ella does a wonderful job and in my opinion the best general Ellington interpreter, but this particular song was written to be sung by a man. It's sung from a man's perspective. No one did it better than Johnny.
@@direfranchement I actually like it the most when Billy Strayhorn himself sings it. Hartman's is kind of too perfect, Billy is not close to being a singer Hartman is, but you could tell that he wrote it, he is feeling it, there is some raw emotion and depression and melancholy in that version.
How do you like Kurt Elling's rendition?
Many have tried, few have hit homers with this song. Ella is one. Surprisingly, or maybe not, so is Lady Gaga. If you haven't heard her stunning live version, you should. She really connects to and milks the song for all it's got.
Lush Life, written by Billy Strayhorn
0:30 I melt every time
No words. Thank you.
Piano player did a good job! 👏👏👏
Utterly captivated.
Awesome!
Beautiful Song truly 💕🎷
Thanks Billy Strayhorn for this tune!
Pure genius!
That’s it !
.....she is MAGIC...to sound like a SCHOOLGIRL....and a WEARY SOPHISTICATE....SIMULTANEOUSLY....
I used to visit all the very gay places
Those come-what-may places
Where one relaxes on the axis
Of the wheel of life
To get the feel of life
From jazz and cocktails
The gals (girls) I knew had sad and sullen gray faces
With distingué traces
That used to be there
You could see where
They'd been washed away
By too many through the day
Twelve o'clock tales
Then you came along
With your siren song
To tempt me to madness
I thought for awhile
That your poignant smile
Was tinged with the sadness
Of a great love for me
I guess (Ah, yes,) I was wrong
Again, I was wrong
Life is lonely again
And only last year everything seemed so sure
Now life is awful again
A troughful of hearts could only be a bore
A week in Paris might (will) ease the bite of it
All I care is to smile in spite of it
I'll forget you I will
While yet you are still
Burning inside my brain
Romance is mush
Stifling those who strive
I'll live a lush life
In some small dive
And there I'll be
While I rot with the rest
Of those whose lives are lonely too
Lush live
Amazing as expected... Johnny Hartman does a great version with Coltrane as well
Breathless... some oxygen please...
Frank Sinatra tried recording this song at least 3 times during his career, but finally gave up.
used to visit all the very gay places
Those come-what-may places
Where one relaxes on the axis of the wheel of life
To get the feel of life from jazz and cocktails
The girls I knew had sad and sullen gray faces
With distinguish traces that used to be there
You could see where they'd been washed away
By too many through the day, twelve O'clock tales
Then you came along with your siren song
To tempt me to madness
I thought for awhile that your poignant smile
Was tinged with the sadness of a great love for me
Ah, yes, I was wrong, again, I was wrong
Life is lonely again and only last year
Everything seemed so sure
Now life is awful again a trough full of hearts
Could only be a bore
A week in Paris could ease the bite of it
All I care is to smile in spite of it
I'll forget you, I will while yet you are still
Burning inside my brain
Romance is mush stifling those who strive
I'll live a lush life in some small dive
And there I'll be while I rot with the rest
Of those whose lives are lonely too
Romance is mush stifling those who strive
I'll live a lush life in some small dive
And there I'll be while I rot with the rest
Of those whose lives are lonely too
"...with distingué traces". ........ to rhyme with "sullen gray faces."
@@marquamfurniture you are right. I have listened and loved many versions of this song and this phrase is frequently misinterpreted.
@@sarahalbers5555 Thanks, Sarah.
President Obama brought me here.❤️
Where was this recorded? What's the venue or full concert name?
Obama brought me here ❤️❤️
Is Ellington really playing here? His hand movements don‘t match the piano track at all. See 0:37
I used to visit all the very gay places
Those come what may places
Where one relaxes on the axis of the wheel of life
To get the feel of life
From jazz and cocktails.
The girls I knew had sad and sullen gray faces
With distingué traces
That used to be there you could see where they'd been washed away
By too many through the day
Twelve o'clock tales.
Then you came along with your siren song
To tempt me to madness!
I thought for a while that your poignant smile was tinged with the sadness
Of a great love for me.
Ah yes! I was wrong
Again,
I was wrong.
Life is lonely again,
And only last year everything seemed so sure.
Now life is awful again,
A trough full of hearts could only be a bore.
A week in Paris will ease the bite of it,
All I care is to smile in spite of it.
I'll forget you, I will
While yet you are still burning inside my brain.
Romance is mush,
Stifling those who strive.
I'll live a lush life in some small dive
And there I'll be, while I rot
With the rest of those whose lives are lonely, too
Its in color you know....
I know thanks
Where was this recorded? What's the venue or full concert name?
Yes I have the full color recording if anyone needs it
Frank Sinatra attempted this song for his “Only the Lonely” album in 1958: [ ruclips.net/video/Vj7S7DER3Bg/видео.htmlsi=UDPUYzyV3E0NhpX8 ] Nelson Riddle provided a lush orchestral accompaniment for him. Unfortunately, during the recording session, Frank found the vocal dynamics were very difficult, frustrating and abandoned the project.
After listening to this outtake, I think that he should have stuck with it until he got it.
Just because she's one of the my favorite ever, does not mean that I like this version.
A matter of tate, this is not her finest.
A king and queen! Thanks Obama :)
What the hell does politics have to do with this masterpiece? Your statement makes no sense!
@@bszmik Every year, around this time, Barack Obama publishes his summer playlist on instagram
I dunno how Barry brang people here, but Rickie Lee brang me
I love Ella but I like Queen Latifah's version better.
Me too.
The Johnny Hartman + John Coltrane version is another one that works for me.
@@BobGeogeo I just listened to this. Just beautiful.
@@margeshilling7983 Glad you liked it. I enjoyed the Queen Latifah, too. Thanks for posting that. Ella + Duke and Strayhorn's own version may have phrasing more as Lush Life was written but I like the more laid back Latifah and Hartman ones.
[Edit - Latifah-Gaga flub, sheesh]
Really hard to sing. Ella's version loses the melancholy of the song. It's more of a spoken word piece. The singer has to be careful not to over sing it.