My Funny Valentine

This article is about the song. For other uses, see My Funny Valentine (disambiguation).
"My Funny Valentine"
Song
Published1937 by Chappell & Co.
GenreTraditional pop
Composer(s)Richard Rodgers
Lyricist(s)Lorenz Hart

"My Funny Valentine" is a show tune from the 1937 Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart coming of age musical Babes in Arms in which it was introduced by teenaged star Mitzi Green. The song became a popular jazz standard, appearing on over 1300 albums performed by over 600 artists. One of them was Chet Baker,[1] for whom it became his signature song.[2][3] In 2015 the Gerry Mulligan quartet's 1953 version of the song (featuring Chet Baker) was inducted into the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry for its "cultural, artistic and/or historical significance to American society and the nation’s audio legacy".[4] Mulligan also recorded the song with his Concert Jazz Band in 1960.[5]

History

Babes in Arms opened at the Shubert Theatre on Broadway, in New York City on April 14, 1937 and ran for 289 performances.[6] In the original play, a character named Billie Smith (played by Mitzi Green) sings the song to Valentine "Val" LaMar (played by Ray Heatherton).[7] The character's name was changed to match the lyric of this song.[8]

In the song, Billie describes Valentine's characteristics in unflattering and derogatory terms (at one point Billie describes Valentine's looks as "laughable", in keeping with the title), but ultimately affirms that he makes her smile and that she does not want him to change. The description of Valentine was consistent with Lorenz Hart's own insecurities and belief that he was too short and ugly to be loved.[9] The lyrics are sufficiently gender-neutral to allow the song to be sung about a person of any gender, and a large proportion of cover versions of the song have been by men describing a hypothetical woman.

Chart versions and covers

The song first hit the charts in 1945, performed by Hal McIntyre with vocals by Ruth Gaylor.[10] It only appeared for one week and hit No. 16.[11] Frank Sinatra recorded a hit version in 1955.

In addition to Chet Baker's 1954 recording, the song has also been covered by Elvis Costello, Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, Steve Goodman, Rickie Lee Jones, Julie London, Harpo Marx, Gerry Mulligan, and Josipa Lisac, amongst others.[12][13][4][14]

The Chet Baker and the Julie London versions of the song were credited in the 1981 film Sharky's Machine, which Burt Reynolds starred in and directed. Doc Severinsen produced the soundtrack for the film,[13] along with Al Capps and Bob Florence.[15]

In the anime series Cowboy Bebop, the episode titled "My Funny Valentine" takes its name from Miles Davis' famous recording of the song. The episode focuses on the character Faye Valentine, exploring her mysterious past and themes of memory, identity, and loss, drawing a subtle parallel to the emotional depth of the song itself. This connection showcases the series' frequent use of jazz music and cultural references to enhance its narrative atmosphere.

In the popular manga title Steel Ball Run, the main antagonist Funny Valentine is named in reference to this song.[16]

The song inspired Ettore Sottsass in his choice of a name for the Olivetti Valentine typewriter.[17][18]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Jazz Standards Songs and Instrumentals (My Funny Valentine)".
  2. ^ Schwanebeck, Wieland; McFarland, Douglas (8 October 2018). Patricia Highsmith on Screen. Springer. ISBN 9783319960500.
  3. ^ "My Funny Valentine". Jazz Messengers.
  4. ^ a b Wallace, Steve (2020-01-30). "My (Not So) Funny Valentine: A Brief History". The WholeNote. Retrieved 2024-04-16.
  5. ^ "National Recording Registry To "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive"". The Library of Congress. 25 March 2015. Archived from the original on 23 June 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  6. ^ Trager, James (2005). The People's Chronology: A Year-by-Year Record of Human Events from Prehistory to the Present (3 ed.). Detroit: Gale. ISBN 0805031340.
  7. ^ Playbill from 1937 Babes in Arms theatrical performance.
  8. ^ Rodgers, Richard (1975) Musical Stages: an autobiography. New York: Random House, page 181
  9. ^ Holden, Stephen."Television Review: Thou Rodgers, Thou Hart, So Fizzy, So Smart", The New York Times, January 6, 1999.
  10. ^ Orodenker, M. H. (1945-01-27). "Popular Record Reviews". Billboard. Vol. 27, no. 4. ISSN 0006-2510.
  11. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1992). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954: The History of American Popular Music. Record Research, Inc. ISBN 0-89820-083-0. As cited in My Funny Valentine (1937), written, compiled, and published by jazzstandards.com.
  12. ^ Zollo, Paul (2021-02-15). "Seven Favorite Covers of "My Funny Valentine"". American Songwriter. Retrieved 2024-03-14.
  13. ^ a b "Sharky's Machine (1981)". B&S About Movies. July 9, 2021. Retrieved November 18, 2023.
  14. ^ Janjatović, Petar (2024). Ex YU rock enciklopedija 1960–2023. Belgrade: self-released / Makart. p. 178.
  15. ^ "Sharky's Machine (1981) Full Cast & Crew". IMDB. 2023. Retrieved November 18, 2023.
  16. ^ "Funny Valentine". 14 February 2024.
  17. ^ "Perché Valentine è l'oggetto di design assoluto". Rivista Studio (in Italian). 2018-04-12. Retrieved 2024-03-14.
  18. ^ "1969, odissea nel design: così Olivetti inventò la tecnologia che ha stile". La Stampa (in Italian). 6 December 2018. Retrieved 14 March 2024.

Further reading