Pick Only One: Version of "Summertime"

T/S JANIS V. MILES

NOCERA (ESL for the win)!

Friends of Dean Martinez

Swansway!
-- mark grout (mark grout), Wednesday, May 24, 2006 3:28 PM (1 year ago) Bookmark Link

Funnily enough, the site hasn't listed this one.

(I sent them it)

ha, their email addy bounced!

Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, of course.

Naw, it's Ella and Louis.

Cathy Berberian

Lee Scratch Perry's dub versh is mad awsome.

I like the Richard Davis/Elvin Jones version a lot.

Miles

I can't believe I'm agreeing with Geir.

Angelique Kidjo's version is nice.

Billy Stewart seconded! BBBBBBBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRROPPP!

Upsetters seconded

Mahalia Jackson

The Sundays

I am sorely tempted to recreate this as a poll.

If you create a poll here are the possible choices.

Does it ever seem weird that this song is so heavily covered? I mean it's a great song, but why this one? And also, it's a very bitter and ironic song and I feel like a lot of performances don't capture that.

Is it impossible to do the song justice without doing so?

Shades of "Mack the Knife"/"Moritat," maybe: a strong melody over simple but memorable chord changes (excuse the lack of precision and the dangerous proximity to Geir territory) can be compelling to a wide range of interpreters even if many of them don't actively engage with the darkness or shades of irony of the lyrics. "Summertime" and "Moritat" also have a tendency to stand in for the larger works of which they're a part (then again, several other songs from Porgy & Bess are also standards, so that might not be so relevant).

I don't consider the chord changes to be simple - they are in the trickier end of the spectrum of jazz standards.

It can be performed either ironically or not. If I remember correctly it is performed more than once in the musical, including unironically/undark as a lullaby. I think it's okay to do it that way.

Anyway, I think it's covered a lot because yeah, strong melody, memorable chord changes and great lyrics. But also because it was written in the 30s and there wasn't a ton of songs like this around then so it really stood out, not just as a bluesy, spritual pop song but was also the outstanding example of that kind of thing for a long time.

they're simple inasmuch as you can pretty much do single-key "blues scale" improv over most of the progression.

I used to get annoyed when I was more of a jazz player because every vocalist either wanted to sing this or All of Me

The Zombies did one of Ready Steady Go! that was quite nice.

I've never heard this but they did a studio version also, which is my pick.

I'd go for Louis and Ella, easily, but no love for the Cal Tjader?!

http://bandwidth.wamu.org/remembering-billy-stewart-and-van-mccoy-two-lesser-known-d-c-music-legends/

includes link to a live version by Billy Stewart that's on Youtube

“Billy did jazz, Billy did blues, he did lots of things that fit his style of music,” Ruffin says. “The thing that excited him most was when he did George Gershwin.”

Billy Stewart has Pete Cosey on a lot of his sides too. Love that stuff.
Also several live versions by Big Brother & Holding co thanks to that destructive James Gurley guitar.
& that Zombies version is one I always loved.
Would have been good by the Doors too.

love this george shearing version

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSnsSDoQWlI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lF_kIV1Dnmw

L. Ron Hubbardtime

Lots of choice cuts listed already, Doc & Merle Watson's version might also be added:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPpf3FLjuMs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSOU6A-D_Co

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cab-A_W7rHE

https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/514533/city-lights-watch-fat-boy-the-billy-stewart-story/

Billy Stewart doc on PBS website

Zombies

Another vote for Sidney Bechet.

Billie's is great:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THflqYOqm3A

many versions are objectively better, but my favorite is still the first I heard:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZC_Ghf3OPnw

RIght now this one, since it just popped up. Hank Mobley.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DTJTjC0fpA

I'm probably the only person on Earth who dislikes this tune. I think I was neutral on it until Arkology, on which there are like four consecutive versions of it on one of the discs. One is too many

What’s there to dislike?

Paul try this, seriously it rules:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pxbr9GXZoI