Body and Soul (1930 song)



"Body and Soul" is a popular song and jazz standard written in 1930 with lyrics by Edward Heyman, Robert Sour and Frank Eyton; and music by Johnny Green.

History
"Body and Soul" was written in New York City for the British actress and singer Gertrude Lawrence, who introduced it to London audiences. Published in England, it was first performed in the United States by Libby Holman in the 1930 Broadway revue Three's a Crowd. In Britain, the orchestras of Jack Hylton and Ambrose recorded the ballad first in the same week in February 1930. In the United States, the tune grew quickly in popularity, and by the end of 1930 at least 11 American bands had recorded it. Louis Armstrong was the first jazz musician to record "Body and Soul", in October 1930, but it was Paul Whiteman and Jack Fulton who popularized it in United States.

"Body and Soul" remains a jazz standard, with hundreds of versions performed and recorded by dozens of artists. Classic vocal recordings include those of Ella Fitzgerald, Annette Hanshaw, Billie Holiday, Billy Eckstine, Etta James, Sarah Vaughan (for the 1957 album Swingin' Easy and the 1978 album How Long Has This Been Going On?)  and Frank Sinatra, and such musicians as Benny Goodman, Lee Konitz, Bill Evans, Russell Garcia (on his 1958 album The Johnny Ever Greens, starring John Williams on piano and Don Fagerquist on trumpet), John Coltrane, (on his 1964 album, Coltrane's Sound, ) Charles Mingus, Thelonious Monk, Stan Kenton, Royce Campbell, Steve Rochinski, and Lester Young contributed notable instrumental recordings. The Manhattan Transfer sang it on their album Extensions in 1979, with lyrics honoring both Hawkins and Eddie Jefferson. Guitar legend Wes Montgomery recorded it four times. To this day, "Body and Soul" is the most recorded jazz standard. (This is one of the few big hits that had a number of different versions of the lyric.)

Coleman Hawkins version
One of the most famous and influential takes was recorded by Coleman Hawkins and His Orchestra on October 11, 1939, at their only recording session for Bluebird, a subsidiary of RCA Victor. The recording is unusual in that the song's melody is only hinted at in the recording; Hawkins' two-choruses of improvisation over the tune's chord progression constitute almost the entire take. Because of this, as well as the imaginative use of harmony and break from traditional swing cliches, the recording is recognised as part of the "early tremors of bebop". In 2004, the Library of Congress entered it into the National Recording Registry.

Tony Bennett and Amy Winehouse version
"Body and Soul" was recorded as a duet by Tony Bennett and Amy Winehouse on March 23, 2011. It was the final recording made by Winehouse before her death on July 23, 2011 at the age of 27. The single was released worldwide on September 14, 2011, what would have been her 28th birthday, on iTunes, MTV and VH1.

When the song reached number 87 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the week of October 1, 2011, it made Bennett, at age 85, the oldest living artist ever to chart on the Hot 100, surpassing the previous record of George Burns. This record was then surpassed by Christopher Lee in 2013. It also gave Bennett the longest overall span of appearances on the Hot 100; his version of "Young and Warm and Wonderful" appeared on the very first Hot 100 chart for the week of August 4, 1958. The song received a Grammy Award at the 54th Grammy Awards in the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance category on February 12, 2012. Proceeds from "Body and Soul" go to benefit The Amy Winehouse Foundation, an organisation created to raise awareness and support for young adults struggling with addiction.

A music video was uploaded to Tony Bennett's YouTube channel on September 14, 2011. The music video shows Winehouse and Bennett in the studio performing the song. It had over 2 million views in its first four days on YouTube. As of August 2017, the video has more than 22 million views.

A documentary film biopic was released that depicts the life and death of Amy Winehouse, Amy (2015). A rare video taped scene of Bennett and Winehouse recording "Body and Soul" in March 2011 was included in the film feature. The song itself was also included on the film's original soundtrack.

Musical analysis
"Body and Soul" is usually performed in the key of Db major. There is a verse that precedes the chorus, but it is rarely performed. (Recordings by Libby Holman and Billie Holiday include it.) The main part of the tune consists of a repeated eight-bar melody, followed by an eight-bar bridge and a final eight-bar return to the melody. The 32-bar, AABA form is typical of popular songs of the time. The "A" section uses conventional chord progressions including ii-V-I turnarounds in the home key of Db, however the bridge is highly unusual in its tonal center shifts. It has been described as "a bridge like no other". "Body and Soul" is considered a challenging piece to solo over; however, the unusual nature of the chords provides a "large degree of improvisational freedom".