A Lovely Way To Spend An Evening

Jimmy McHugh & Bobby Darin

One summer night in 1959, at The Hollywood Bowl, Bobby Darin headlined a salute to the music of Jimmy McHugh. It was called I Feel a Song Coming On.

The 21-year old wunderkind had just exploded onto the national scene, winning Record of the Year for his breakthrough hit, Mack The Knife, at the first ever Grammy Awards Ceremony.

Bobby sang I Feel A Song Comin' On, On The Sunny Side Of The Street, Comin' In On A Wing And A Prayer, I Won't Dance, I Can't Give You Anything But Love, I Couldn't Sleep A Wink Last Night and Let's Get Lost.

Conductor Buddy Bregman led the mammoth 105 piece orchestra, which included a 55 member string section!

Rounding out the salute to Jimmy’s music was Vic Damone and the gorgeous Italian actress and singer Anna Maria Alberghetti. Among the McHugh songs they performed was Can't Get Out Of This Mood, When You and I Were Young Maggie Blues and When My Sugar Walks Down The Street.

The show ended with Jimmy Bobby, Vic and Anna Marie singing A Lovely Way To Spend An Evening.

Indeed it was.

Click to hear:

Bobby Darin/I Can’t Give You Anything But Love, Baby

SONG SPOTTING: The Cotton Club

Most recently screening on CineMax’s MAX HD channel, this epic crime drama, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, is centered around the famed Harlem Jazz Club of the 1920’s, The Cotton Club.

The 1984 film features several Jimmy McHugh songs including Exactly Like You and his iconic ‘hot jazz’ barn-burner, Diga Diga Doo.

Jimmy was the club’s first Musical Director a coveted position which he held during the Club’s most celebrated years. Under his musical direction he discovered Duke Ellington and brought the young, novice songwriter Dorothy Fields to the Club to write songs with him.

Richard Gere, Diane Lane and Gregory Hines head up the cast which includes Nicolas Cage, Bob Hoskins, Laurence Fishburne, Maurice Hines and Gwen Verdon.

The film received several Golden Globe © and Academy Award© nominations.

Try to catch The Cotton Club on the tube- you wont be disappointed!

Click to hear:

Duke Ellington & His Orchestra performing

Jimmy McHugh’s Diga Diga Doo

A Lovely Way To Spend An Evening

Critical Acclaim for Wesla Whitfield in Concert

From a New York Times review by Stephen Holden:

‘Ms. Whitfield combines ruthless insight, intense emotion and highly evolved jazz phrasing into a musical evening that goes beyond mere entertainment to flirt with profundity. Ms. Whitfield has always shown signs that she glimpsed more than she let on about the popular standards she chose.’

In the San Francisco Chronicle, David Wiegand says…

‘Wesla Whitfield is an indoor landmark. Every great city deserves a signature chanteuse, and San Francisco is fortunate to have Whitfield as its resident voice.’

Wesla Whitfield will be performing her new show, ‘Whistling Away The Dark’, accompanied by The Mike Greensill Trio. Wesla and the Trio will be appearing  exclusively at The Rrazz Room - the premiere night club in San Francisco, located in the beautiful Nikko Hotel, from May 10 through 29. Not to be missed!

On May 31st Wesla begins a return engagement at The Metropolitan Room in New York City through June 12.

As Wesla sings on her CD Let’s Get Lost: The Music of Jimmy McHugh, this is A Lovely Way To Spend An Evening.

Mike Greensill and Wesla rehearsing in San Francisco - 2010

Link:

http://www.oprah.com/spirit/Phenomenal-Woman-Wesla-Whitfield/1

http://youtu.be/-Mlh100DlA0

Jazz Corner: Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Band @ Vibrato Grill

Clayton Hamilton Jazz Band knocked out the SRO audience at Herb Alpert's Vibrato Grill (Tues. Jan. 18) with their rousing  "Dorsey-esque" arrangement of "Sunny Side of the Street" to a standing ovation!

Italian Superstar MINA Sings McHugh

Like Judy & Liza, she only needs one name

Pop Music Icon, Mina, has scored 77 hit albums and 71 Top Ten singles since exploding onto Italy’s music scene in 1960.

She became a household name thanks to her incredible three-octave vocal range and her image as an emancipated woman, who rebelled against traditional Italian conventions.

Famed Spanish filmmaker, Pedro Almodovar, has just announced he  is set to direct a film on the singer’s life.

Throughout her career, Mina has combined her contemporary music style with standards like Jimmy’s classic, ‘I’m In The Mood For Love’.

Click here to see the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pI-3jVlH1gc

More on Mina:

http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/archives/pedro_almodavar_to_next_tackle_biopic_of_controversial_italian_singer_mina

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mina

A Blue Note: Farewell James Moody

All of us at Jimmy McHugh Music are sad at the passing of jazz saxophonist, James Moody. He will always be remembered for his improvisation on “I’m In The Mood For Love,” which became “Moody’s Mood For Love” and has been recorded by everyone from Aretha Franklin to Amy Winehouse.


Recently James Moody paired with another great friend to Jimmy McHugh Music, Terence Blanchard. Monterey Jazz Festival 50th Anniversary All-Stars tour of the United States, Europe and Asia with Jazz greats Terence Blanchard, Nnenna Freelon, Benny Green.

In 2001 Terence recorded his Jimmy McHugh Grammy nominated Album "Lets Get Lost" with Jane Monheit, Dianne Reeves, Terence Blanchard, Cassandra Wilson, Diana Krall.

James Moody will be dearly missed by all of us.

Remembering James Moody

'Moody's Mood For Love' James Mood

George Benson: Moody's Mood

Jimmy McHugh Song Spotting #3

‘Don’t Blame Me’ from ‘Two Weeks In Another Town’

A terrific look inside the film business, directed by Oscar © Winner Vincente Minnelli and starring Academy Award © recipients Kirk Douglas, Edward G Robinson and Clair Trevor.

In the film, the song is performed by singer Leslie Uggams, who said:

‘The movie starred Kirk Douglas; I sang his favorite song in it, “Don’t Blame Me.” Liza got me the movie, directed by her dad, Vincente Minnelli. What a friend!’

CLICK HERE FOR MORE:

•To Weeks In Another Town 1962 TCM

•IMDB

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By The Way…

There are THREE JIMMY MCHUGH Titles in

ASCAP’s list of the 100 MOST RECORDED SONGS:

I CAN'T GIVE YOU ANYTHING BUT LOVE, BABY

ON THE SUNNY SIDE OF THE STREET

I'M IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE

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WE LOVE STEVE TYRELL

Steve Tyrell - Live at the critically acclaimed  Catalina Jazz Club- Los Angeles - 2010

Grammy Award-winning vocalist Steve Tyrell is truly a renaissance man. In his four and a half decades in the music business, he has achieved great success as an artist, producer, songwriter, music supervisor, and performer. His first album "A New Standard," which includes three Jimmy McHugh songs, was amongst the best selling jazz albums for over 5 years.


In November, Steve will return to LA to appear at the 
Catalina Bar & Grill. Then he’s off to NY for a very special engagement at the Café Carlyle.  November 9 through New Years Eve. There isn’t a better reason to visit NY during the holidays. We’ll see you there!

(Click here for Steve’s 2010 itinerary)
STEVE TYRELL IN CONCERT
October
21-23
Club M
San Diego, CA
 

28
Lakewood Theatre

Dallas, TX



29-30
Scullers Jazz Club

Allston, MA

November
1
Birchmere

Alexandria, VA


2
Ramshead
Annapolis, MD

4-7
Catalina Bar and Grill
 
Los Angeles, CA


9-30
Café Carlyle
New York, NY

December
1-31
Café Carlyle
New York, NY

stevetyrell.com


catalinajazzclub.com

thecarlyle.com

We love Nikki Yanofsky!

The Canadian Teen Singing Sensation recorded a mash-up version of the Jimmy McHugh classic 'On The Sunny Side Of The Street' with Led Zeppelin's Fool in the Rain. It's on her debut album, "Nikki."

Nikki on Nightline!

Nikki once again graced the airwaves of National TV with a 4-minute piece on ABC's Nightline! Originally airing on September 15th, 2010, you can now see the piece on the Nightline website.

Links:
www.nikkionline.ca/
www.facebook.com/nikkiyanofsky

McHugh Song Spotting #2

HOUSE CALLS (1972) A comedy starring Academy Award-winners © Glenda Jackson and Walter Matthau.
(Walter Matthau sings along/karaokes with Tommy Dorsey's classic recording of 'On The Sunny Side Of The Street' The tune is reprised at the end of the film, performed by Frankie Laine.)
Link to film review

McHugh Song Spotting #1

McHugh Song Spotting

We recently caught two great films that feature music by
Jimmy McHugh.
Set your DVR next time these are shown. You won't be sorry!

THE BIG CLOCK (1947) Suspense thriller starring Academy Award-winner © Ray Milland and Charles Laughton; featuring 'I'm In The Mood For Love.
Link to film review

Frank Sinatra 1944 Billboard Magazine Review

From the Jimmy McHugh Music Archives:

Frank Sinatra

Live at the New York Paramount Theatre


Sinatra! That's all, brother.
Paramount probably reinforced the walls and called the police department to handle the Bobby-Soxers - all last week to make sure the place had adequate protection
when The Voice began a three week stint.
And brother, they needed it.

Kids mobbed the joint, climbed the ceiling, squealed, sighed, ahhed, gurgled, mooned all over the place and in every way gave indication that F.S. is ...the hottest box office attraction in the last decade.

5,000 bobbysoxers filled the theatre, which seats less than 3,500. There was an estimated 10,000 girls waiting to get in every day.
Frank sang "I Couldn't Sleep A Wink Last Night," *** "All Or Nothing At All," "Close To You," "I Don't Know Why," "This Love Of Mine" and "Put Your Dreams Away."

*** Jimmy McHugh composed "I Couldn't Sleep A Wink Last Night," "A Lovely Way To Spend An Evening" & more for "Higher and Higher," Frank Sinatra's feature film debut.

JIMMY MCHUGH in 3D!

Disney's spectacular new dance flick 'STEP UP in 3D'-showcases I WON'T DANCE- written by Jimmy McHugh, Dorothy Fields and Jerome Kern.

The song was first featured in a movie in 1935; The film was Roberta, starring Fred Astaire.

Snoop Dogg sings "I'm In The Mood For Love" on "I Get That A Lot"

Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole and Rod Stewart are among the many great artists who have performed the Jimmy McHugh classic, ‘I’m In The Mood For Love.’ 

Now a new artist has been added to this musical pantheon, None other than the one and only Snoop Dogg.  Recently on the new CBS series, ‘I Get That A Lot’, Snoop crooned the song Barbra Streisand once called ‘The Greatest Love Song Ever Written.’

"I Feel A Song Coming On" Biography Featured in Leonard Maltin's Book List

Leonard Maltin included I Feel a Song Coming On in his Year End Book Survey on his website Movie Crazy.

Oxford Times Article about Author Alyn Shipton

A great article about author Alyn Shipton in the Oxford Times, it covers his writing career and his latest book the biography of songwriting legend Jimmy McHugh.

All That Jazz @ The Oxford Times

Alyn Shipton at WBGO interview

Some nice photos of Alyn Shipton being interviewed at radio station WBGO, about his new biography of Jimmy McHugh. Click through includes photos of Jimmy's grandson the photographer Jim McHugh III.

Photos of Author Alyn Shipton at WBGO radio Interview

Jimmy and Irving Mills

Jimmy and Irving Mills perform as the Hotsy Totsy Boys, the name from a song of theirs: “I got myself a brand new hotsy/I’m her totsy and she’s my hotsy.”

Jimmy McHugh's Quote regarding his mother..

Jimmy on his mother, a musician: “Her dream of me as a future concert virtuoso was strained…when she would catch me playing the classics with a syncopated beat.”

John Pizzarelli & wife Jessica Molaskey are opening tonite!

John Pizzarelli & wife Jessica Molaskey are opening tonite at the Carlyle with "I Just Found Out About Love And I Like It" A Jimmy McHugh classic.

The Carlyle Hotel