S’Wonderful

     As I write this, there have been no Weekly Tunes for several weeks because of various technical problems.  I was hoping to be up and running this week but another bug has popped up – a bug of a minor sort, I hope.

     As a consequence, I can’t record anything new yet, but I can go back to a recording that clarinetist Herb Hesch and bassist Skip Johnson and I did several years ago.  In the same session we did September in the Rain, which is in the Tune Archive.

     Doing a piece featuring clarinet is actually apt since several weeks ago I got an unexpected e-mail from a former employee of the sadly defunct Philadelphia department store Strawbridge & Clothier where for years I played at lunch time in its popular Food Hall.  This employee ( who happens to have the name of a famous big band leader) is a clarinet fan, so I am happy to post Herb’s playing.

     Herb is perhaps less happy about it.  As I mentioned previously, Herb was not pleased with his playing here.  We recorded this in haste and he felt uneasy with the mic set-up.  Still, discounting for this if you must, I think it holds up well.  There are a few ballads on the same recording that are lovely and I will post them sometime too if I can persuade Herb to ease his scruples.

     So here is the 1927 George and Ira Gershwin hit from the musical Funny Face. Click on the title in red to hear it.  There is no vocal (back then, knowing that I couldn’t sing, I didn’t) but Ira’s lyrics are below for your enjoyment.

 'S Wonderful

‘S Wonderful!

‘S Marvelous!

You should care for me!

‘S Awful nice

‘S paradise!

‘S what I love to see!

You’ve made my life so glamorous

You can’t blame me for feeling amorous

Oh! ‘S Wonderful!

‘S Marvelous!

That you should care for me.