Angel Eyes (song)
Encyclopedia
"Angel Eyes" is a 1946 popular
song
composed by Matt Dennis
, with lyrics by Earl Brent. It was featured in the 1953 film Jennifer
. First edition by Dorsey Bros Music a Div. of Music Sales Corsp (ASCAP) 1946 (Renewed).
The Bridge shifts to A-flat major scale using a ii-V-I- progression, and then uses the same progression transposed down a semitone, therefore going to G major scale briefly. After a a quick pass through c#min7 and F#7 (hinting at a B major tonality) it goes back to the original key of c minor using again a ii-V-I progression.
Because of its colourful harmonic changes, "Angel Eyes" is a very popular jazz standard
which has inspired many original interpretations. Several performers have recorded different versions of the song, including Bill Henderson, Chet Baker
, Don Ellis
, Kenny Burrell
, Pat Metheny
, Frank Sinatra
, Sonny Stitt
, Neil Sedaka
, Ella Fitzgerald
, Hank Crawford
, Earl Grant
, Jim Hall
, Wayne Shorter
, Dave Brubeck
, Paul Desmond
, Charles Neville
, Oscar Peterson
and Duke Ellington
. In 1971, when Sinatra held what he intended to be his farewell concert (and the end to his show business career), he closed with "Angel Eyes." His retirement lasted only two years.
Popular music
Popular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres "having wide appeal" and is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. It stands in contrast to both art music and traditional music, which are typically disseminated academically or orally to smaller, local...
song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
composed by Matt Dennis
Matt Dennis
Matt Dennis was a singer, pianist, bandleader, arranger, and writer of music for popular music songs.He was born in Seattle, Washington. His mother was a violinist and his father a singer, and the family was in vaudeville, so he was early exposed to music. In 1933 he joined Horace Heidt's...
, with lyrics by Earl Brent. It was featured in the 1953 film Jennifer
Jennifer (1953 film)
Jennifer is a 1953 film directed by Joel Newton and starring Ida Lupino and Howard Duff.-Plot:Agnes Langley is hired by Loren Gayle to replace the "missing" Jennifer as caretaker for the currently unoccupied Gayle Estate...
. First edition by Dorsey Bros Music a Div. of Music Sales Corsp (ASCAP) 1946 (Renewed).
Composition
"Angel Eyes" is in the form AABA. The first and the second A sections are almost identical, with only a few minor variations. II - V - I minor and major progressions are employed frequently throughout the piece. The A sections are in the C minor scale. It starts with a C minor, Ab7(#11) and G7 progression. Over the Ab7(#11) there is an F# in the melody (the minor seventh to the Ab7(#11) chord). That F# is a sharp fourth in relation to the C which is the tonic of the song. This interval is used throughout the song. Another tritone is the diminished fifth over the Dm7_5 chord but it fits so well into the harmonic context of the c minor key that it is hardly recognized as a dissonant interval.The Bridge shifts to A-flat major scale using a ii-V-I- progression, and then uses the same progression transposed down a semitone, therefore going to G major scale briefly. After a a quick pass through c#min7 and F#7 (hinting at a B major tonality) it goes back to the original key of c minor using again a ii-V-I progression.
Because of its colourful harmonic changes, "Angel Eyes" is a very popular jazz standard
Jazz standard
Jazz standards are musical compositions which are an important part of the musical repertoire of jazz musicians, in that they are widely known, performed, and recorded by jazz musicians, and widely known by listeners. There is no definitive list of jazz standards, and the list of songs deemed to be...
which has inspired many original interpretations. Several performers have recorded different versions of the song, including Bill Henderson, Chet Baker
Chet Baker
Chesney Henry "Chet" Baker, Jr. was an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist and singer.Though his music earned him a large following , Baker's popularity was due in part to his "matinee idol-beauty" and "well-publicized drug habit."He died in 1988 in Amsterdam, the...
, Don Ellis
Don Ellis
Don Ellis was an American jazz trumpeter, drummer, composer and bandleader. He is best known for his extensive musical experimentation, particularly in the area of unusual time signatures...
, Kenny Burrell
Kenny Burrell
Kenneth Earl "Kenny" Burrell is an American jazz guitarist. His playing is grounded in bebop and blues; he has performed and recorded with a wide range of jazz musicians.-Biography:...
, Pat Metheny
Pat Metheny
Patrick Bruce "Pat" Metheny is an American jazz guitarist and composer.One of the most successful and critically acclaimed jazz musicians to come to prominence in the 1970s and '80s, he is the leader of the Pat Metheny Group and is also involved in duets, solo works and other side projects...
, Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
, Sonny Stitt
Sonny Stitt
Edward "Sonny" Stitt was an American jazz saxophonist of the bebop/hard bop idiom. He was also one of the best-documented saxophonists of his generation, recording over 100 albums in his lifetime...
, Neil Sedaka
Neil Sedaka
Neil Sedaka is an American pop/rock singer, pianist, and composer. His career has spanned nearly 55 years, during which time he has sold millions of records as an artist and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collaborating mostly with lyricists Howard...
, Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
, Hank Crawford
Hank Crawford
Bennie Ross "Hank" Crawford, Jr. was an American R&B, hard bop, jazz-funk, soul jazz alto saxophonist, arranger and songwriter...
, Earl Grant
Earl Grant
Earl Grant was an American easy listening pianist, Hammond organist, and vocalist popular in the 1950s and 1960s.-Career:...
, Jim Hall
Jim Hall (musician)
James Stanley Hall is an American jazz guitarist.-Biography:Educated at the Cleveland Institute of Music, Hall moved to Los Angeles where he began to attract national, and then international, attention in the late 1950s...
, Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter is an American jazz saxophonist and composer.He is generally acknowledged to be jazz's greatest living composer, and many of his compositions have become standards...
, Dave Brubeck
Dave Brubeck
David Warren "Dave" Brubeck is an American jazz pianist. He has written a number of jazz standards, including "In Your Own Sweet Way" and "The Duke". Brubeck's style ranges from refined to bombastic, reflecting his mother's attempts at classical training and his improvisational skills...
, Paul Desmond
Paul Desmond
Paul Desmond , born Paul Emil Breitenfeld, was a jazz alto saxophonist and composer born in San Francisco, best known for the work he did in the Dave Brubeck Quartet and for penning that group's greatest hit, "Take Five"...
, Charles Neville
Charles Neville
Charles Neville or Nevill may refer to:*Charles Neville, 6th Earl of Westmorland*Charles Neville of the R&B group, The Neville Brothers*Charles William Nevill, British Member of Parliament for Carmarthen, 1874–1876...
, Oscar Peterson
Oscar Peterson
Oscar Emmanuel Peterson was a Canadian jazz pianist and composer. He was called the "Maharaja of the keyboard" by Duke Ellington, "O.P." by his friends. He released over 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards, and received other numerous awards and honours over the course of his career...
and Duke Ellington
Duke Ellington
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
. In 1971, when Sinatra held what he intended to be his farewell concert (and the end to his show business career), he closed with "Angel Eyes." His retirement lasted only two years.
Recorded versions
- Herb Jeffries (1947)
- Ella FitzgeraldElla FitzgeraldElla Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
(1952 - The Last Decca Years 1949-1954) - Nat King ColeNat King ColeNathaniel Adams Coles , known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. Although an accomplished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres...
(1953) - The Four FreshmenThe Four FreshmenThe Four Freshmen is a multiple Grammy-nominated American male vocal band quartet that blends open-harmony jazz arrangements with the big band vocal group sounds of The Modernaires , The Pied Pipers , and The Mel-Tones , founded in the barbershop tradition...
(on their biggest hit album "Four Freshmen and Five Trombones" from the mid-1950s) - Jack JonesJack Jones (singer)John Allan "Jack" Jones is an American jazz and pop singer. He was one of the most popular vocalists of the 1960s.-Overview:...
(1959, remastered in 1997) - Stan KentonStan KentonStanley Newcomb "Stan" Kenton was a pianist, composer, and arranger who led a highly innovative, influential, and often controversial American jazz orchestra. In later years he was widely active as an educator....
, June ChristyJune ChristyJune Christy , born Shirley Luster, was an American singer, known for her work in the cool jazz genre and for her silky smooth vocals. Her success as a singer began with The Stan Kenton Orchestra. She pursued a solo career from 1954 and is best known for her debut album Something Cool...
& The Four Freshmen - Road Show (1959) - Ella FitzgeraldElla FitzgeraldElla Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
- Ella Fitzgerald Sings Songs from Let No Man Write My Epitaph (1960) - Anita O'DayAnita O'DayAnita O'Day was an American jazz singer.Born Anita Belle Colton, O'Day was admired for her sense of rhythm and dynamics, and her early big band appearances shattered the traditional image of the "girl singer"...
- Waiter, Make Mine Blues (1960) - Neil SedakaNeil SedakaNeil Sedaka is an American pop/rock singer, pianist, and composer. His career has spanned nearly 55 years, during which time he has sold millions of records as an artist and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collaborating mostly with lyricists Howard...
- Circulate (1961) - Earl GrantEarl GrantEarl Grant was an American easy listening pianist, Hammond organist, and vocalist popular in the 1950s and 1960s.-Career:...
on his album Beyond The Reef (1962) - Frank SinatraFrank SinatraFrancis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
- Frank Sinatra Sings for Only the LonelyFrank Sinatra Sings for Only the LonelyFrank Sinatra Sings for Only the Lonely is a studio LP by the American singer Frank Sinatra...
(1958), Sinatra at the SandsSinatra at the SandsSinatra at the Sands is a 1966 live album by Frank Sinatra, accompanied by Count Basie and his orchestra, conducted and arranged by Quincy Jones, recorded live at the Copa Room of the Sands Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas....
(1966) - Willis Alan RamseyWillis Alan RamseyWillis Alan Ramsey is an American singer/songwriter, a cult legend among fans of Americana and Texas country. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama and raised in Dallas, Texas. Ramsey graduated from Highland Park High School in 1969, and was a prominent baritone in the High School's Lads and Lassies...
- Willis Alan Ramsey (1972) - June ChristyJune ChristyJune Christy , born Shirley Luster, was an American singer, known for her work in the cool jazz genre and for her silky smooth vocals. Her success as a singer began with The Stan Kenton Orchestra. She pursued a solo career from 1954 and is best known for her debut album Something Cool...
- ImpromptuImpromptu (June Christy album)Impromptu - June Christy with The Lou Levy SextetJune Christy’s final album, recorded in 1977.# "My Shining Hour" – 3:20# "Once Upon a Summertime" – 4:47...
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(1984) - Cheryl Bentyne - on Rob WassermanRob WassermanRob Wasserman is an American bass player, who has played with a wide variety of musicians including David Grisman, Lou Reed, Bob Weir, Jerry Garcia, Bruce Cockburn, Van Morrison, Rickie Lee Jones, Brian Wilson, Elvis Costello, Mark Morris, Aaron Neville, Chris Whitley, Studs Terkel, Pete Seeger,...
's album Duets MCA Records (1988) - Jimmy ScottJimmy ScottJimmy Scott , aka "Little" Jimmy Scott, is an American jazz vocalist famous for his unusually high contralto voice which is due to Kallmann's syndrome, a very rare genetic condition. The condition stunted his growth at four feet eleven inches until, at age 37, he grew another 8 inches to the...
- on his album All the Way (1992) - Rebecka TörnqvistRebecka TörnqvistRebecka Törnqvist is a Swedish jazz and pop vocalist.Her debut album A Night like This was released in 1993 and sold over 100,000 copies. She was nominated for five Swedish Grammys in 1993...
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soundtrack (1995) - Moe KoffmanMoe KoffmanMoe Koffman, OC was a Canadian jazz musician and composer. He played the flute, soprano, alto and tenor saxophone and clarinet...
- on his album Devil's Brew (1996) - Sue RaneySue RaneySue Raney is an American jazz singer. Signed by Capitol Records at the age of seventeen, her debut album, the Nelson Riddle-produced When Your Lover Has Gone, was released in 1958. Raney begin singing at only four years of age, and encouraged by her mother, began working as a professional before...
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- on his album Favorite Things (1997) - Barry ManilowBarry ManilowBarry Manilow is an American singer-songwriter, musician, arranger, producer, conductor, and performer, best known for such recordings as "Could It Be Magic", "Mandy", "Can't Smile Without You", and "Copacabana ."...
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- on his album I'm Old Fashioned (2010) - Charles NevilleCharles NevilleCharles Neville or Nevill may refer to:*Charles Neville, 6th Earl of Westmorland*Charles Neville of the R&B group, The Neville Brothers*Charles William Nevill, British Member of Parliament for Carmarthen, 1874–1876...
- on his album Safe in Buddha's Palm (2007) - Mr. Hudson (2010)