Early Autumn (song)

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"Early Autumn"
Song
Written	Johnny Mercer
Genre	Jazz
Composer(s)	Ralph Burns Woody Herman
Lyricist(s)	Johnny Mercer

"Early Autumn" is a song composed by Ralph Burns and Woody Herman with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. The song grew out of the fourth segment of Burns's "Summer Sequence" concert piece.^[1] The original recording was made by Herman's second herd on December 27, 1947, which had a notable eight-bar solo by saxophonist Stan Getz.^[2] Herman asked Johnny Mercer to write lyrics in 1952 and he re-recorded the song taking the vocal duties himself.^[3]

Woody Herman and Jo Stafford recorded versions of the song that both charted in the US in 1952.^[4]

Notable covers

Woody Herman — instrumental version (1949).^[5]^[6]
Woody Herman — single release in 1952 for the Mars label (catalog No. 300).^[7]
Ted Heath and His Music, vocal by Lita Roza (1952).^[8]
Jo Stafford — single version that peaked at #25 on the Billboard singles chart.^[9]
Ella Fitzgerald – a single release for Decca Records (catalog No. 29810) in 1956 (recorded in 1952)^[10]
Ella Fitzgerald – new version for her album Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Johnny Mercer Songbook (1964)
Johnny Mathis – Wonderful, Wonderful (1957)
Anita O'Day - Anita O'Day Sings the Winners (1958)
Stan Getz – Stan Getz & Strings (1961)
Cleo Laine - I Am a Song (RCA Victor, 1973)
Anita Kerr Singers – Round Midnight (1975)
Patricia Barber - Split (1989)
Mel Tormé – Night at the Concord Pavilion (1990)
Diana Krall - included on the Mark Whitfield album Forever Love (1997).
The Four Freshmen – In Session (2005).
Patti LuPone – The Lady with the Torch (2006).

Personnel

Personnel on the 1947 recording were:^[11]^[12]

Stan Fishelson — trumpet
Bernie Glow — trumpet
Marky Markowitz — trumpet
Ernie Royal — trumpet
Shorty Rogers — trumpet
Earl Swope — trombone
Ollie Wilson — trombone
Bob Swift — trombone
Woody Herman — clarinet
Jimmy Giuffre — clarinet
Sam Marowitz — alto saxophone
Herbie Steward — tenor saxophone
Stan Getz — tenor saxophone
Zoot Sims — tenor saxophone
Serge Chaloff — baritone saxophone
Ralph Burns — piano
Walt Yoder — bass
Terry Gibbs — vibraphone
Don Lamond — drums

References

^ Gioia, Ted (2011). The History of Jazz (2 ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 312-313, 336. ISBN 9780190087210.
^ Giddins, Gary (1998). Visions of Jazz. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 407. ISBN 0-19-507675-3.
^ "45cat.com". 45cat.com. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
^ Whitburn, Joel (1986). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954. Wisconsin, USA: Record Research Inc. p. 495. ISBN 0-89820-083-0.
^ "45worlds.com". 45worlds.com. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
^ Gilliland, John. (197X). "Pop Chronicles 1940s Program #22 - All Tracks UNT Digital Library". Digital.library.unt.edu. Retrieved 2021-02-15.
^ Whitburn, Joel (1986). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954. Wisconsin, USA: Record Research Inc. p. 211. ISBN 0-89820-083-0.
^ "45worlds.com". 45worlds.com. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
^ "45cat.com". 45cat.com. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
^ "The Online Discographical Project". 78discography.com. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
^ Keeper of the Flame: The Complete Capitol Recordings at AllMusic. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
^ Myers, Marc (October 26, 2021). "The Early Autumn Story and 10 Faves". JazzWax. Retrieved August 29, 2023.

External links

"Early Autumn" at Jazz Standards

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