Love for Sale (song)
| "Love for Sale" | |
|---|---|
| Song by The Peddlers | |
| Released | 1930 |
| Genre | Jazz |
| Songwriter(s) | Cole Porter |
"Love for Sale" is a song by Cole Porter introduced by Kathryn Crawford in the musical The New Yorkers, which opened on Broadway on December 8, 1930 and closed in May 1931 after 168 performances.[1] The song is written from the viewpoint of a prostitute advertising "love for sale".
Early versions[]
The song's chorus, like many in the Great American Songbook, is written in the A-A-B-A format. However, instead of 32 bars, it has 64, plus an 8-bar tag. The tag is often dropped when the song is performed. The tune, like many of Porter's, shifts between a major and minor feeling.[citation needed] The A section is in the key of B-flat minor before modulating to B-flat major and back.[2]
Background[]
When the song came out in 1930, a newspaper labelled it as 'in bad taste';[3] radio stations avoided broadcasting it.[4] Because of the complaints, Porter shifted the setting of the song in the musical to the Cotton Club in Harlem, where it was sung by an African-American, Elisabeth Welch, instead of white singer Kathryn Crawford.[5]
Popular recordings in 1931 were made by Libby Holman and by Fred Waring's Pennsylvanians.[6] The Jack Teagarden Orchestra recorded the song in February 1940, with Kitty Kallen as the featured vocalist.[7]
Notable recordings[]
- Billie Holiday recorded a version of the song in 1952.[4]
- Ella Fitzgerald recorded the song for her 1956 album Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Song Book.
- Tony Bennett recorded a version of this on his 1957 album The Beat of My Heart.
- Miles Davis recorded a version of the song with his sextet in 1958, published in 1958 Miles and as a bonus track on the 2008 reissue of Kind of Blue.
- Boney M. released a short version of it on their album love For Sale (1977).
- Astrud Gilberto - for the album That Girl from Ipanema (1977).[8]
- Elvis Costello released a version of the tune, including the opening verse (prologue), on a Rhino re-lease of his 1981 album Trust.
- Anne Pigalle produced and released on Illuminated Records in 1982
- Vic Godard And The Subway Sect - for his album Songs For Sale (1982).[9]
- Jacky Terrasson included the song in his 1998 live album Alive.
- Seal recorded a version of the song for his 2017 album Standards.
- Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga recorded a version of the song for their 2021 album of the same name.
It is also widely recorded as a jazz standard. Notable instrumental versions included those by Sidney Bechet, Erroll Garner, Stan Kenton, Charlie Parker, The Three Sounds, Art Tatum, Cannonball Adderley, Dexter Gordon, Buddy Rich, and Cecil Taylor. There is a version of the song by Hal Kemp's Orch. & The Smoothies, 1940.
See also[]
References[]
- ^ "Internet Broadway Database". ibdb.com. Retrieved November 25, 2018.
- ^ "Love For Sale". Jazzstandards.com. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
- ^ Schwartz, Charles (1979). Cole Porter. Da Capo Press. ISBN 0-306-80097-7, pp. 115–116
- ^ Jump up to: a b Gioia, Ted (2012). The Jazz Standards: A Guide to the Repertoire. Oxford University Press. pp. 240–241. ISBN 978-0-19-993739-4.
- ^ Yaffe, David (2006). Fascinating Rhythm: Reading Jazz in American Writing. Princeton University Press. Chapter 4. ISBN 978-1-40082-680-3.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (1986). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 543. ISBN 0-89820-083-0.
- ^ Shaw, M., Rust, B. (2002). Jazz and Ragtime Records, 1897-1942: L-Z. United States: Mainspring Press. https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Jazz_and_Ragtime_Records_1897_1942_L_Z/_J9HAAAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0
- ^ "Discogs.com". Discogs.com. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
- ^ "Songs For Sale - Vic Godard & The Subway Sect". allmusic.com.
External links[]
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- 1930 songs
- 1930s jazz standards
- Songs from The New Yorkers
- Songs written by Cole Porter
- Billie Holiday songs
- Songs about prostitutes
- Songs composed in B-flat minor
- Jazz compositions in B-flat minor