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Oh, Lady Be Good!
Composer:
George Gershwin
Lyricist:
Ira Gershwin
Year:
1924
Origin:
Debuted in the 1924 musical Lady, Be Good
Style:
Gershwin's own original tempo directions for the piece was "slow and gracefully". However, this tune has come to often be approached as a medium-up tempo swing.
Form:
A-A-B-A (32 Bars) [8-8-8-8]
Verse:
A-B (16 Bars) [8-8]
Almost never included in performances, Cliff Edwards featured it in his 1925 recording. It can also be heard on the 1959 album Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Song Book.
Key:
Most commonly played in G Major.
Harmony/Overview:
The harmony of this composition is relatively straightforward, remaining almost entirely diatonic throughout the entire piece. In practice however many reharmonizations are commonly used, particularly in the A sections. Simply put, the A sections move from I7 - IV7 and then back to I, before a final II - V returns to the tonic. However, in G Major the first 4 bars of the A sections could very well be: G6 - G6/B - C7 - C#dim7 - Gmaj7/D - C7 - Bmi7 - Bbmi7. The bridge begins on IV, and while many earlier recordings proceed with IVmi it is very common to #IVdim7 instead. The bridge finishes predictably with a momentary stay on II7 before a final II - V back to the tonic.
Recordings:
This song has been recorded over 400 times to date. It was first introduced in the 1924 Musical Lady Be Good, and was first recorded by Carl Fenton and his orchestra the same year. Many legendary jazz musicians left behind recordings of the tune, from the likes of Benny Goodman, Django Reinhardt, Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young and even Charlie Parker. Although it has come to be a sort of period piece from the 1920's, it continues to serve as the basis for inspired improvisations.
JGC Top Picks:
Count Basie and his Orchestra, 1936
Charlie Parker, Jazz at the Philharmonic, 1946
Oscar Peterson, Oscar Peterson Plays the George Gershwin Songbook, 1959
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Recordings
Exhaustive List In Chronological Order
Additional Readings
Transcriptions
Charlie Parker, Jazz at the Philharmonic
Oscar Peterson, Plays the Gershwin Songbook