Welcome to Week 2 of The Definitive Version, a new weekly feature of my website. You can read more about the project here.
Song: My Funny Valentine
Composer: Richard Rodgers
Lyricist: Lorenz Hart
Form: AABA, 32-bar
Standard Key: C Minor/E-flat Major
The song was composed by Rodgers and Hart for their 1937 musical Babes in Arms. Lyrics were added by Johnny Burke, best known for his collaborations with Jimmy Van Heusen and others. It was a hit for Johnny Mathis in 1959 and has remained his signature song. Wikipedia states over 600 different artists have recorded “My Funny Valentine” on over 1,300 albums. Among the charms of this song are its pedal chord structures (Cmi / Cmi(ma7) / Cmi7 / Cmi6) and the way that the melody slightly changes in each “A” section (1st A section: both phrases start on C; 2nd A section: both phrases start on E-Flat; third A section: first phrase starts on C, second phrase on E-Flat). The song is straightforwardly about love that transcends outward appearances. One piece of trivia often forgotten is that while the song works as being sung to someone’s valentine, in the original musical, it was literally sung to someone named “Valentine.”
Definitive Version: Chet Baker (1954) (Album: Chet Baker Sings)
Form: One chorus plus short tag ending
Feel: In-tempo ballad
Key: C Minor / E-flat Major
Instrumentation: Solo vocal, rhythm section, trumpet countermelody
Interestingly, the Library of Congress National Recording Registry selected the 1953 recording of the Gerry Mulligan Quartet featuring Chet Baker – an instrumental version with a very similar approach and feel. Chet’s vocal recording in 1954 is the pinnacle of “My Funny Valentine” for its deceptive simplicity. His approach stays very true to the original melody, without ornamentation or improvisation; but his phrasing is so subtle and sophisticated that we can’t help being moved by his interpretation. Chet finds a deep melancholy within the song and brings that to the forefront of his interpretation.
Also Recommended:
- Ella Fitzgerald (from Ella Sings the Rodgers and Hart Songbook)
- Frank Sinatra (from Songs for Young Lovers)
- Sarah Vaughan (from The Rodgers & Hart Songbook)
- Miles Davis (from Cookin’ With the Miles Davis Quintet) (I know this isn’t vocal, but Miles phrases with the ear of a singer…)