Am I Blue?
Am I Blue? is a song written by Grant Clarke (lyrics) and Harry Akst (music) and published in 1929.
The title
The song written in F major has the form AABA and is not a blues song despite the title ; the only connection to the blues is the liberal use of blue notes in the final cadences of each A section. The rising melodic lines are reminiscent of Richard Rodgers ' song The Blue Room (1926). Ethel Waters and the Harmony Four Quartet first introduced the song in the 1929 film musical On with the Show .
First recordings and cover versions
As early as 1929, the song was recorded by Ethel Waters himself, accompanied by Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey , Mannie Klein , Frank Signorelli and Joe Tarto (Columbia 1837-D), as well as by the California Ramblers , Seger Ellis , Irving Mills , Billy Moore and Libby Holman , Ben Selvin , Jimmie Noone , Lud Gluskin , Bert Ambrose included. In the 1930s and 40s, cover versions followed. a. by Benny Goodman , Bunny Berigan , Ziggy Elman , Teddy Powell , Billie Holiday , Mildred Bailey , Jo Stafford , Mel Tormé , Hoagy Carmichael and Woody Herman . The discographer Tom Lord lists 370 (as of 2015) cover versions of the song. The vocal versions by Annette Hanshaw / Nat Shilkret , Smith Ballew / Ben Selvin, Jimmy Davis / Tom Gerun and Ray Charles should also be emphasized . Am I BLue? was also used in various music films, such as So Long Letty (1930), The Hard way (1942), Is Everybody Happy? (1943, with Ted Lewis and Larry Parks ). Andy Williams and Hoagy Carmichael sing him in Lauren Bacall's debut film To Have and Not to Have (1944). Barbra Streisand sang him in Funny Lady (1975), Ethel Waters in Cotton Club (1984). The song was also nominated for the American Film Institute's list of the best American film songs .