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Pick your favorite version(s) of a standard...


Jim R

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Some versions I have:

Harry Allen Plays Ellington Songs

Gene Ammons Gentle Jug, Vol. 3

Chet Baker The Complete Pacific Jazz Studio Recordings

Billy Bean The Trio "Rediscovered"

Kenny Burrell Gifts (a.k.a. "Heritage")

Jaki Byard Out Front!

Conte Candoli Sweet Simon

Nat Cole The Unforgettable Nat King Cole

John Coltrane Lush Life

John Coltrane & Johnny Hartman

Billy Eckstine No Cover No Minimum

Mark Elf Over The Airwaves

Art Farmer To Duke With Love

Ella Fitzgerald Ellington Songbook

Red Garland The Nearness Of You

Roland Hanna Live At Maybeck Recital Hall, Vol. 32

Johnny Hartman Thank You For Everything

Joe Henderson Lush Life / The Music Of Billy Strayhorn

Eddie Higgins Haunted Heart

Clifford Jordan Spellbound

Clifford Jordan Royal Ballads

Klaus Weiss Quintet Featuring Clifford Jordan / Live At Opus 1

Clifford Jordan Live At Ethell's

Peter Leitch Red Zone

Bill Mays Live At Maybeck Recital Hall, Vol. 26

Carmen McRae Blue Moon

Phineas Newborn A World Of Piano!

Frank Rosolino Four Horns And A Lush Life

Billy Strayhorn The Peaceful Side Of Billy Strayhorn

Billy Strayhorn Lush Life

Sarah Vaughan Complete On Mercury, Vol. 1 "Great Jazz Years; 1954- 1956"

Sarah Vaughan Duke Ellington Songbook Vol. 1

Teddy Wilson / Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz With Teddy Wilson

No doubt there are some other great versions not listed here.

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Maybe I should have asked "besides Coltrane/Hartman" (or maybe not, but that's my all-time favorite, hands down). Strayhorn on Capitol, Trane on Prestige, and one of the Clifford Jordans would probably be my next choices.

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BTW, is there any song that isn't a perfect fit for that voice?  B-)

"Roundabout"?

Jim, I need to be hipped. Did Nat record it? I only have one version in my entire collection, but it's an instrumental (Bill Charlap on Criss Cross). A quick search revealed that Vernon Duke (wait a second... you weren't referring to the YES tune, right? ;) ) once said that this was his second favorite composition, after Autumn In New Yorkicon13.gif Ogden Nash lyric... but I'm not sure I've ever heard it...

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I really like Nat's, whether William did or not. Also really like a noncommercial version I have from a radio interview/broadcast where Strays plays and sings the item himself. And I really like the version on his Capitol lp. Especially the stereo version! ^_^

Come to think of it I like Rickie Lee Jones' as well. I've become less and less and less of a Johnny Hartman fan over the years. His version doesn't do it for me.

Edited by jazzbo
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  • 1 year later...

Surprised to find that one of my favorite versions of this great song went unmentioned in this thread : a duet between Charles McPherson and Pat Martino found on this album :

296647.jpg

At eight minutes it is the longest , and I think , best track on the album . Beautifully lyrical playing from both men ; really lovely .

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Trane/Hartman. That's one of those magic moments that happen a few times every century.

Indeed! :tup

Long after that, Michel Sardaby's solo piano version (featured in BFT 18), and the version I recorded with a local singer many moons ago - her name is Regina Klein (the CD is long OOP).

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I love the Trane/Hartman version to bits but I've always been partial to the to the Trane version from 1957 with Red Garland and Don Byrd.

Possibly because Garland's playing is like so much of his stuff with the Quintet; beautifully dense chords and shimmering triplets. The when Byrd's solo comes in, it's like a mountain looming into view. Love it.

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I love the Trane/Hartman version to bits but I've always been partial to the to the Trane version from 1957 with Red Garland and Don Byrd.

Possibly because Garland's playing is like so much of his stuff with the Quintet; beautifully dense chords and shimmering triplets. The when Byrd's solo comes in, it's like a mountain looming into view. Love it.

Me too.

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