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“Van Heusen’s
original harmonic progression over
section ‘A’ corresponds to what
jazz musicians often call ‘Lady
Bird’ or ‘Half
Nelson’ changes...” |
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- K. J. McElrath
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Dolores
Gray introduced “Here’s That
Rainy Day” in the Broadway musical,
Carnival in Flanders, which
opened on September 8, 1953, at
the New Century Theatre.
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Carnival in Flanders was
based on the 1935, French film comedy
La Kermesse Heroique, which
had won several Best Foreign Film
awards. Despite the success of the
source material, a score by Jimmy
Van Heusen and Johnny Burke, and
a cast that boasted John Raitt,
the production struggled to establish
itself. Veteran film director Preston
Sturges was hired to salvage the
play three weeks before its Broadway
debut, but the last-minute rescue
attempt was not enough, and the
show closed after only six performances.
Carnival in Flanders,
for all its brevity, left its impression
on Broadway. The Van Heusen/Burke
score generated a top jazz standard
composition in “Here’s That Rainy
Day,” and Raitt’s co-star,
Dolores Gray, won a Tony Award
for Leading Actress in a Musical,
a standing record for the shortest-lived,
Tony-Award-winning role!
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John Barrett Jr. aptly described “Here’s That
Rainy Day” as “a gentle yawn, the sun rising on
a sad feeling.” It is a ballad about lost love,
about love turning to a cold, rainy day. With a
relaxed tempo and a feeling of melancholy, the lyrics
and music support each other in creating the mood.
That is not to say that it is a simple song. Alec
Wilder, in his book
American Popular Song: The Great Innovators, 1900-1950,
comments that “Here’s That Rainy Day” is “a very
difficult song” with a complex bass line. He characterizes
it as “powerful,” “affecting,” and with “great weight
and authority.” The song is an excellent example
of the sophistication that became acceptable in
popular songs in the 1940’s.
Jazz musicians appreciate the elegance of “Here’s
That Rainy Day” with its surprising melodies and
harmonies. The song’s flexibility has allowed it
to be recorded hundreds of times as a ballad, a
swing number, and even an up-tempo, bossa nova tune.
-JW
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Musical analysis of
“Here's That Rainy Day”
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| Original
Key |
F major |
| Form |
A – B – A
– C |
| Tonality |
Primarily
major |
| Movement |
The “A” sections
are slow; upward arpeggios with embellished
top note. “B” and “C” sections tend to leap
down and arpeggiate upwards. |
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Comments
(assumed
background)
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Van Heusen’s original harmonic progression
over section “A” corresponds to what jazz
musicians often call “Lady
Bird” or “Half
Nelson” changes – I – bIIIma7 – bVIma7
(in the original, Fmaj7 - Ab maj7 –Dbmaj7),
with one chord per measure. Some players
perform this starting in the parallel minor
and then follow a descending bass line.
In the original key, this is: Fm7 – C7/E
– Ebm6 – Dm7(b5) – Dbmaj7. This is not necessarily
an improvement over the original; however,
it is a bone of contention between the more
rabid players. In either case, the Dbmaj7
skips down two minor thirds to ii7 (Bbm7
to Gm7), proceeding to V7 – I. “B” starts
on a iv, actually functioning as a ii7 of
the new temporary key of Ab. This drops
to Gm7(b5) (after an embellishing pass through
its own subdominant iv, Dbmaj7), which is
the ii7 of the original I key of F major.
The second time, going into the “C” section,
Fmaj7 is followed by Bbmaj7– a very nice
twist. Bbmaj7 (IV) goes to ii7 – V7 – I,
which is followed by a surprise II7, delaying
the final ii7 – V7 – I resolution.
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K. J. McElrath - Musicologist for JazzStandards.com
Check out K. J. McElrath's book of Jazz Standards Guide Tone Lines at his web site (www.bardicle.com). |
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“Here's That Rainy Day”
was included in these films:
(None on film)
And on Broadway:
- Carnival in Flanders (1953,
Dolores Gray)
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Click on a CD for more details
at Amazon.com
Kenny Rankin
The Kenny Rankin Album
1989, Atlantic 1013
Original recording, 1976
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| The golden-throated singer has been
hard to peg stylistically, but here, in
the company of master arranger/conductor
Don Costa, he proves his jazz credentials
in a compelling reading of “Here’s That
Rainy Day.” |
Gonzalo Rubalcaba
Inner Voyage
1999, Blue Note
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| Cuban pianist Rubalcaba slows the
song almost to a halt, allowing the trio
to explore it intimately. There is peace
and elegance throughout. |
Donna Leonhart
Bein’ Green
2001, Sunnyside
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| Vocalist Leonhart has hidden her
light under a bushel for too long. This
is a wonderful collection of songs, dealt
with in a straight-forward manner and with
unusual and varied instrumentation. Just
piano and strings on this cut make it delicious. |
Bill Evans
Alone
1990, Polygram #833801
Original recording, 1968
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| The master pianist at work, exploring,
solo, every nook and cranny of the song. |
Elvin Jones/ Richard Davis
Heavy Sounds
1999, Polygram
Original recording, 1968, Impulse!
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| “Here’s That Rainy Day” stands out
as a gem on an uneven album. Drummer Jones
and bassist Davis are airtight, and the
quartet partakes in some intriguing conversation. |
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The controversy continues over whether
Frank Sinatra was a jazz singer or not. Certainly
his early years in the orchestras of jazz musicians
Harry James and Tommy Dorsey (and later work with
Count Basie) would lead one to believe that they
considered his style was more swinging than some
of his colleagues.
But it is known that Sinatra was widely admired
and listened to by jazz musicians, and he may be
the one to receive credit for making “Here’s That
Rainy Day” into a standard. His 1959 Capitol recording
of the tune, arranged by Gordon Jenkins, is a beautiful
and timeless rendering of the number.
Chris Tyle - Jazz Musician and Historian
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| This section shows the jazz standards
written by the same writing team. Click on a name
to see all of a writer's jazz standards.
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Additional information on “Here's That Rainy Day” may be found in:
1 page including the following types of information: music analysis.
1 paragraph including the following types of information: summary.
1 paragraph including the following types of information: history and performers.
1 paragraph including the following types of information: Broadway productions, performers and style discussion.
Includes the following types of information: song lyrics.
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