billiefan2001's channel

@GerardLover9

October 21, 1936

@19Edurne

So true 19Edurne. It's amazing to me that there are some who "don't get" this album, but it's really for those of us whose lives and loves have fallen short of our expectations. Her singing is ineffable but I hear laughter in the pain. Sweet sadness indeed and maybe just a glimmer of ...

@stapelgek100

Yes, "Whiteman swings it" is correct and is indeed a direct reference to Paul Whiteman, one of the most popular band leaders at the time of this recording (1935).

@GlamorousBunny21

With all due respect to Sinatra, Billie far surpasses him in this recording IMO. Sinatra's rendition is poignant but Billie transcends the song and transforms it into a universal lament.

@armand372100

With all due respect to Sinatra, Billie far surpasses him in this recording. Sinatra's heart may have been broken over Ava, but Billie transcends the song and transforms it into a universal lament.

@rusrita

For me, Billie's is the definitive version. Chet's is lovely but Billie takes it to another level altogether. All others sound pale in comparison.

@espilehiyo

Chet's version is beautiful but Billie gives it such a layered depth--sardonic wit wrapped in a regretful melancholy. Chet learned a great deal from her as is evident in so many of his fine vocal performances.

@BlueEyes0770

Nice job Alex! Indeed you're right, it doesn't get much more classic than Billie's seminal Columbia recordings from 1935-42. I've listened to them a thousand times over and they never get old. Keep up the good work!

@waynebrasler

Beautifully stated and what a fitting tribute to the Lady on her 96th birthday.

@MegaMilla09

Yes indeed, it's the one and only Wanda!

It's the title song from her 1984 album Rockabilly Fever.

@hihosilverlining2 Etta is great, but this is Billie's song all the way. It was written especially for her and her initial 1946 recording for Decca is iconic and can't be be surpassed--IMHO.

@MrCFCarePOO Utter tosh is right. BH was indeed a unique genius, which makes these ridiculous comments all the more laughable. She needs no defending--the truth is that her music will live on long after such boorish and ill-considered rantings are forgotten.

Well said Zipemova1.

@moonknight1985

What a joke. Billie's cuts right through your soul--the Batman version is fine but Holiday takes it to another level altogether.

Gut wrenching and transcendent. This is the definitive version by far--and I've heard many versions.

@bransonbelle

Nina's interpretation is lovely but Billie's 1948 recording with just a quartet is still the definitive version for me--so warm and achingly vulnerable. That was the recording that inspired and influenced Nina's version.

@patriotismisevil

Yes, this clip is from a BBC television broadcast filmed in London in about February 1959, just 5 months before her death on July 17, 1959.

@cmcharlesmillar

I respectfully disagree--Gogi's version is classic but Patsy made this song her own. Like Billie Holiday, she gives her songs an ironic poignancy that is second to none. That's why she lives on nearly 50 years after her death.