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“I have been here
so long that even the sea gulls
must recognize me.”
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- From Max
Miller's I Cover the Waterfront
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In the early 1930’s the American
public was well aware of the phrase,
“I Cover the Waterfront.” It was
the title of a best-selling novel
by Max Miller (1932), a hit recording
written by Johnny Green and Edward
Heyman (1933), and a Reliance Studios
film starring Claudette Colbert
(1933).
Both the song and the film were
inspired by the Miller book, and
while the film was still in production
the song became a hit, prompting
the producers to re-score the film
to include the Green/Heyman composition.
Even the sheet music industry jumped
aboard the bandwagon. Eager to capitalize
on the song’s success, even if it
bent the facts, Harms Incorporated
published “I Cover the Waterfront”
with the cover quote, “Inspired
by the United Artist Picture of
the same name.”
“I Cover the Waterfront” was
immediately popular with both performers
and audiences. A short list of 1933
recordings includes Annette Hanshaw,
Abe Lyman’s California Ambassador
Hotel Orchestra (Grace Barrie vocal),
Connie Boswell, and
Louis Armstrong and His Orchestra.
Joe Haymes’ Orchestra recorded
the first major hit of the song,
rising to number seventeen on the
pop charts, with Eddy Duchin’s Orchestra
charting a week later.
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Joe Haymes and His Orchestra
(1933,
Cliff Weston, vocal, #17)
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Eddy Duchin and His Orchestra
(1933, Lew Sherwood, vocal,
#3)
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The 1933 performance of “I Cover
the Waterfront” by
Louis Armstrong and His Orchestra
may be seen on the documentary
At the Jazz Band Ball or
on Ken Burn’s
Jazz – the full performance
is on Episode 2 of the DVD set.
Johnny Green was one of the many
to record “I Cover the Waterfront”
in 1933. A talented composer and
arranger, Johnny Green and His Orchestra
recorded over a dozen hit songs
from 1934 to 1936. Green had also
served as a piano accompanist for
Ethel Merman,
Gertrude Lawrence and Gertrude
Niesen. In a 1933 British session
he recorded what has been termed
a “brilliant” piano medley of his
songs, from his first, “Coquette”
(1928), to his then current hit,
“I Cover the Waterfront.”
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According to a September 27,
2003, Union-Tribune newspaper
article by columnist Don Freeman,
it was the San Diego waterfront
that, at least indirectly, inspired
the Green/Heyman song. Freeman points
out that author Max Miller (1899-1967)
had worked for the old San Diego
Sun newspaper. He goes on to
say,
Miller, a
part of San Diego’s past, had
been writing about the waterfront
since the mid-1920s. With his
seemingly effortless style,
he created a book [I Cover
the Waterfront] that began
as follows: “I have been here
so long that even the sea gulls
must recognize me.”
Almost overnight, when his first
book won extraordinary reviews in
New York and elsewhere, Miller became
an internationally known author.
Soon Miller was turning out a book
a year.
In his article, I Cover the
Waterfront -- Life Through the Cracks,
Poynter Institute Senior Scholar
Roy Peter Clark describes Miller’s
I Cover the Waterfront as
“a series of loosely connected nonfiction
yarns … a vivid account of oceanside
life … fishermen, con artists, publicists,
celebrities, smugglers, and spies,
a world that Miller explores with
an improbable combination of sentimentality
and cynicism.”
The film
I Cover the Waterfront captures
the atmosphere of the book but largely
ignores its storylines. Claudette
Colbert plays the daughter of smuggling
ship captain while her love interest
is a reporter (Ben Lyon) who would
like to expose her father.
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Edward Heyman's verse for “I Cover
the Waterfront” is often omitted
but may be heard on Jacqui Naylor’s
critically acclaimed debut CD,
Jacqui Naylor, 1999, Ruby
Records (Ryko) and on
Ken Burns Jazz Collection: Billie
Holiday, 2000, Polygram
Records.
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Edward Heyman’s lyrics tell a story of lost love.
The verse sets the scene, “Away from the city …
by the desolate docks” with a heart “as heavy as
stone.” The refrain is basically in the popular
A-A-B-A form and each of the A sections begins with
the hook phrase, “I Cover the Waterfront.” The story
progresses with hoping, then questioning, and finally
closes with the hopeful claim, “… the one that I
love will soon come back to me.” -JW
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Musical analysis of
“I Cover the Waterfront”
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| Original
Key |
G major |
| Form |
A1 – A2 –
B – A2 |
| Tonality |
Primarily
major |
| Movement |
Step-wise
down and up, followed by descending arpeggio
and step-wise movement up during “A.” The
“B” section consists of wide leaps and chromatic
movement upward, followed by descending
thirds, returning to “A.” |
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Comments
(assumed
background)
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The piece starts out on a “vi” chord, but
this is really a substitution for II7 leading
to V7, lending variety and interest. Some
modern performers start with a II13 on beats
one and two, dropping the 13th a half-step
to form a II7+5 and create the beginning
of a nice descending, chromatic countermelody.
The iii and ct˚7 in measure 4 (B minor and
Bb˚7 in the original key) are more decorative
than functional, but again provide a little
spice to the harmonic progression. The descending
chromatic progressions in mm. 5–6 are again
substitutions for the functional circle
of fifths. I – VI7 – II7 – V7 would work
just as well but would sound rather bland.
“B” is essentially a “call-and-response”
section. The statement – a repeated note
is answered by an ascending chromatic line
an octave lower. This is repeated three
times before the final statement in mm.
7-8 of the bridge. |
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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Listen to Lester Young play “I Cover the Waterfront”
with Buddy Rich and Teddy Wilson. I like the changes
because they’re simple and I don’t have to think
about it. I don’t like a million changes a minute.
I want to express myself and play the melody, too,
and this tune has a great melody. The bridge is
perfect. Nat King Cole also played this tune beautifully.
Jessica
Williams, jazz pianist
www.jessicawilliams.com
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Instrumentalist?
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“I Cover the Waterfront”
was included in these films:
- I Cover the Waterfront (1933,
instrumental)
- Joe Versus the Volcano (1990,
The Ink Spots)
- Malcolm X (1992, Miki Howard)
- Se7en (1995, Billie Holiday)
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Click on a CD for more details
at Amazon.com
Billie Holiday
The Quintessential Billie Holiday Vol.9
(1940-1942)
1991, Sony 47031
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| This is an exquisite recording of
Holiday at her very best. She is soft and
seductive without losing that world-weariness
that makes “I Cover the Waterfront” more
than a simple song. |
Terence Blanchard
The Billie Holiday Songbook
1994, Sony 57793
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| Trumpeter Blanchard’s wonderfully
lyrical take on the tune has as much to
do with Holiday’s beautiful reading of the
song as the song itself. It is undeniably
romantic in its heartbreaking melancholia. |
Hank Jones
Live at Maybeck Recital Hall Vol. 16
1991, Concord 4502
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| Jones gives the tune a pert but
gently swinging reading in this solo piano
recital. He also performs it solo on altoist
Frank Morgan’s1992 CD, You Must Believe
in Spring. |
Adam Makowicz
A Tribute to Art Tatum
2000, VWC 4108
Original recording, 1997
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| Makowicz was inspired to pursue
jazz when he heard Tatum on Willis Conover’s
radio program, Voice of America, as a child
in Poland. Make no mistake, Makowicz has
the technique to elevate this tribute to
the level of the master. |
Shelly Manne & His Friends
Shelly Manne & His Friends, Vol 1
2001, JVC Classics
Original recording, 1956, Contemporary
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| Pianist Andre Previn is delicate
and deliberate on this highly inventive
rendition of the song. Drummer Manne and
bassist Leroy Vinegar step lightly. Unfortunately
this is only available as a pricey import,
but Manne and Friends made several other
recordings. |
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Pianist Joe Sullivan, a disciple of Earl Hines
and
Fats Waller, had a tasty, small swing band at
New York’s Cafe Society in 1940. Although the band
didn’t have a long engagement, they did record some
memorable sides for Okeh (supervised by John Hammond),
one of which was a splendid rendition of “I Cover
the Waterfront.” The tune was sung by
Benny Goodman’s ex-vocalist, Helen Ward.
In 1945, Lester Young, on the West Coast, had
the good fortune to be hired by promoter Norman
Granz for a session on his Norgran label. His fellow
band members were Nat “King” Cole and drummer Buddy
Rich. The trio’s recording of “I Cover the Waterfront”
is a showcase for Lester’s fine ballad playing.
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 “I Cover the Waterfront” may be found in:
1 paragraph including the following types of information: history.
4 pages including the following types of information: history and music analysis.
1 paragraph including the following types of information: history and performers.
Includes the following types of information: song lyrics.
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