IT´S ONLY A PAPER MOON

Music: Harold Arlen- Lyrics: Yip Harburg, Billy Rose

Year: 1933

 

It might as well be spring-clasicos del jazz-standards jazz

Origin of the song

On 2 December 1932 the drama The Great Magoo was released in the Selwyn Theatre of New York, produced by Billy Rose, whose authors where Ben Hecht and Gene Fowler. The producer, who needed a song for a character who was disillusioned with life and finally fell in love, asked Arlen and Harburg if they had something suitable, and they gave him a song called ‘If You Believed in Me’. The song had a good reception but the show was a complete failure and they had to withdraw it from the hoarding after eleven performances.

On 25 November 1933, the film Take a Chance was released in the US, produced by Paramount Pictures, directed by Monte Brice and Laurence Schwab, and starring James Dunn, June Knight, Lillian Roth, and Cliff Edwards. It was a cinema adaptation of the Broadway musical with the same name, starring Ethel Merman, who had been very popular the previous season. In the soundtrack of the film Take a Chance they included the song ‘If You Believed in Me’ with the new title ‘It’s Only A Paper Moon’.

Arlen and Harburg collaborated many times –‘Last Night When We Were Young’ (1937), ‘Over the Rainbow’ (1938), and ‘Happiness Is a Thing Called Joe’ (1942)– with considerable success.


Versions in the top charts

PERFORMERS

DATE OF RECORDING

DAY OF ENTRANCE

PERMANENCE WEEKS

HIGH POSITION REACHED

 

Paul Whiteman Orchestra

1933.09.11

1933.10.07

8

9

Peggy Healy (voc)

Cliff Edwards

1933.10.24

1933.11.25

4

13

Cliff Edwards (voc)

King Cole Trio

1943.12.15

1944.12.02

5

5

Nat Cole (voc)

Rhythm Blues charts

Ella Fitzgerald & The Delta Rhythm Boys

1945.03.27

1945.08.25

3

9

Ella Fitzgerald, The Delta Rhythm

Boys (voc)

Benny Goodman Orchestra

1945.06.18

1945.09.29

1

10

Dorothy Reid (voc)

Jazz. Outstanding performances

  Instrumental

PERFORMERS

DATE OF RECORDING

MUSICIANS WHO TOOK PART IN THE RECORDING

 

John Kirby Sextet

1941.07.25

Charlie Shavers (tp), Buster Bailey (cl), Russell Procope (as), Billy Kyle (p), John Kirby (b), O'Neill Spencer (d)

Lester Young Band

1946.01.15

Lester Young (ts), Howard McGhee (tp), Vic Dickenson (tb), Willie Smith (as), Wesley Jones (p), Curtis Counce (b), Johnny Otis (d)

Django Reinhardt & Stéphane Grappelli

1949.01.??

Django Reinhardt (g), Stéphane Grappelli (vn), Gianni Safred (p), Marco Pecori (b), Aurelio de Carolis (d)

Miles Davis Quintet

1951.10.05

Miles Davis (tp), Sonny Rollins (ts), Walter Bishop Jr. (p), Tommy Potter (b), Art Blakey (d)

Lionel Hampton Quintet

1954.04.13

Buddy DeFranco (cl), Lionel Hampton (vib), Oscar Peterson (p), Ray Brown (b),

Buddy Rich (d)

Art Tatum

1955.01.19

Art Tatum (p)

Kenny Drew Trio

1956.09.26

Kenny Drew (p), Paul Chambers (b), Philly Joe Jones (d)

Art Blakey Jazz Messengers

1962.03.18

Freddie Hubbard (tp), Curtis Fuller (tb), Wayne Shorter (ts), Cedar Walton (p), Jymie Merritt (b), Art Blakey (d)

Count Basie- Zoot Sims Quartet

1975.04.09

Zoot Sims (ts), Count Basie (p, org), John Heard (b), Louis Bellson (d)

J.J. Johnson & Al Grey

1983.11.28

J.J. Johnson, Al Grey (tb), Kenny Barron (tec, p), Ray Brown (b), Mickey Roker (d),

Dave Carey (per),

Stéphane Grappelli & Martin Taylor

1993.01.??

Stéphane Grappelli (vn), Martin Taylor (g)

George Shearing Trio

1994.??.??

George Shearing (p), Louis Stewart (g), Neil Swainson (b)

  Vocal

PERFORMERS

DATE OF RECORDING

MUSICIANS WHO TOOK PART IN THE RECORDING

 

King Cole Trio

1943.12.15

Nat Cole (p, voc), Oscar Moore (g), Johnny Miller (b)

Ella Fitzgerald & The Delta Rhythm Boys

1945.03.27

Ella Fitzgerald, Carl Jones, Traverse Crawford, Kelsey Pharr, Otha Lee Gaines (voc), Renee De Knight (tp), Hi White (g), Haig Stephens (b), George Wettling (d)

Benny Goodman Orchestra

1945.06.18

Benny Goodman (cl, dir), Al Cuozzo, Vince Badale, Frank Lopinto, Tony Faso (tp), Trummy Young, Chauncey Welsch, Eddie Aulino (tb), Hymie Schertzer, Ray Eckstrand (as), Bill Shine, Al Epstein (ts), Danny Bank (bars), Charlie Queener (p), Mike Bryan (g), Clyde Lombardi (b), Morey Feld (d), Dorothy Reid (voc)

Jess Stacy Orchestra

1945.06.29

Jess Stacy (p, dir), Billy Butterfield, Pee Wee Erwin, Anthony Natoli (tp), Will Bradley, Jack Satterfield (tb), Sal Franzella (cl), Hank Ross, Hymie Schertzer (as), Larry Binyon, Julius Bradley (ts), Frank Worrell (g), Bob Haggart (b), Mario Toscarelli (d), Lee Wiley (voc)

Frank Sinatra

1950.04.24

Frank Sinatra (voc), Billy Butterfield, Steve Lipkins, Pinky Savitt (tp), Arthur Drelinger, Jimmy Horvath, Hymie Schertzer (as), Jerry Jerome, Babe Russin (ts), Bernie Leighton (p), Allan Reuss (g), Philip Stephens (b), Johnny Blowers (d), George Siravo (dir)

Nat King Cole & His Trio

1956.08.15

Nat Cole (p, voc), Harry 'Sweets' Edison (tp), John Collins (g), Charlie Harris (b),

Lee Young (d)

Ella Fitzgerald

1960.08.01

Ella Fitzgerald (voc), Don Fagerquist (tp), Ted Nash (as), Plas Johnson (ts), Paul Smith (p), John Collins, Al Hendrickson (g), Joe Mondragon (b), Alvin Stoller (d), Billy May (dir)

Ella Fitzgerald

1967.07.26

Ella Fitzgerald (voc), Jimmy Jones (p), Bob Cranshaw (b), Sam Woodyard (d)

Dexter Gordon Sextet

1979.01.26

Dexter Gordon (ts), Woody Shaw (tp), Curtis Fuller (tb), George Cables (p), Rufus Reid (b), Eddie Gladden (d), Eddie Jefferson (voc)

Tierney Sutton

2008.09.03

Tierney Sutton (voc), Christian Jacob (p), Trey Henry (b), Ray Brinker (d)

On cinemas

 The song 'It's Only A Paper Moon' is included in the soundtrack of the following movies:

 

ORIGINAL TITLE

TITLE IN SPAIN

YEAR OF PRODUCTION

PERFORMERS OF THE SONG IN THE FILM

Take A Chance

No se estrenó en España

1933

Cliff Edwards

A Streetcar Named Desire

Un tranvía llamado deseo

1951

Vivien Leigh

Paper Moon

Luna de papel

1973

Paul Whiteman Orchestra

Funny Lady

Funny Lady

1975

Barbra Streisand; James Caan

Autour de minuit

Alrededor de la medianoche

1986

 

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon. El alma de la ciudad

1991

 

A League Of Their Own

Ellas dan el golpe

1992

James Taylor

Safe Passage

Tensa espera

1993

Heather Davie

The English Patient

El paciente inglés

1996

 

The Notorious Bettie Page

Bettie Page: la chica de las revistas

2005

Coleman Hawkins

The Break-Up

Separados

2006

Ella Fitzgerald

The Water Horse: Legend Of The Deep

Mi monstruo y yo

2007

Benny Goodman Orchestra

Kit Kittredge: An American Girl

Kit Kittredge: Sueños de periodista

2008

Cliff Edwards

Killing Them Softly

Mátalos suavemente

2012

Cliff Edwards

Manglehorn

Señor Manglehorn

2014

 

The Wedding Ringer

El gurú de las bodas

2015

 

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